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誰かの顔をちらっと見る (dareka no kao o chiratto miru - to glance at someone's face)

Grammar & Usage

fixed expression

neutral

How it works

This expression describes the action of briefly looking at someone's face. 誰か (dareka) means 'someone,' 顔 (kao) means 'face,' and を (o) is a direct object particle. ちらっと (chiratto) is an adverbial expression indicating a quick, fleeting, or furtive glance, while 見る (miru) means 'to see' or 'to look.'

Sample sentences

電車の中で、隣の席の人の顔をちらっと見た。

On the train, I glanced at the face of the person in the next seat.

彼女は彼が話している間、時々私の顔をちらっと見た。

While he was talking, she occasionally glanced at my face.

その男は警戒するように、周りの人の顔をちらっと見ていた。

The man glanced at the faces of people around him, as if wary.

Quick facts

particles:の (no) connects 誰か (someone) to 顔 (face), indicating possession or association. を (o) marks 顔 (face) as the direct object of 見る (to look).

adverbial_form:ちらっと is an onomatopoeic adverb (擬態語 - gitaigo) describing a quick, momentary action. It often precedes verbs like 見る (miru - to see) or 聞く (kiku - to hear) to add nuance of brevity or furtiveness.

Often used with

ちらっと見る (chiratto miru - to glance)

ちらりと見る (chirari to miru - to glance, slightly more formal than ちらっと)

目を合わせる (me o awaseru - to make eye contact)

顔をじっと見る (kao o jitto miru - to stare at someone's face)

横目で見る (yokome de miru - to look sideways/askance)

Mnemonic

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Example

電車の中で、隣の席の人の顔をちらっと見た。

On the train, I glanced at the face of the person in the next seat.

彼女は彼が話している間、時々私の顔をちらっと見た。

While he was talking, she occasionally glanced at my face.