We use the verblookto mean ‘turn our eyes in a particular direction to see something’. It is followed byatto refer to the person or thing which we see:
He’slooking atme.
Not:He’s looking me.
Look, there’s a massive spider!
Don’tlooknow.
[In a shop]
A:Can I help you?
B:No thank you, I’m justlooking.
We don’t uselookwithiforwhether. We useseeinstead:
Can yousee ifthere are any biscuits in the cupboard?
Not:Can you look if there are…
Lookis used to form a number of phrasaland prepositional verbs(look for, after, look up, etc.). A good dictionary will give you information on these verbs.
See also:
Look at,seeorwatch?
Lookas a linking verb
We often uselookas a linking verb likeappear, be, become, seem. As a linking verb,lookdoes not take an object and it is followed by a phrase or clause which gives more information about the subject (a complement):
That picturelooksold.
That jacketlooksvery expensive.
Lookas a linking verb is sometimes followed bylike,as iforas though:
look like+ noun phrase
Helooks likesomeone famous.
Itlooks likea nice day outside.
look as if/as though+ clause
Shelooks as ifshe is going to cry.
Theylooked as thoughthey had seen a ghost.
See also:
Linking verbs
Lookas a discourse marker
We sometimes uselookas a discourse markerbut it needs to be used carefully as it is very strong. We use it when we are explaining something or making a point, especially when we are annoyed or speaking very forcefully:
[in a political debate]
Look, too many people have died in this war.
[a boss talking to an employee]
Look, Mark, you have been late for work every day this week. Is there a reason?
See also:
Discourse markers (so, right, okay)