Askance

 WORD OF THE DAY

askance / adverb / uh-SKANSS

Definition
1a: with disapproval or distrust
1b: scornfully
2a: with a side-glance
2b: obliquely

Examples
"'Sometimes not being authentic to the region is a good thing.' … [chef] Klime Kovaceski, who also prefers dried pasta to fresh, understands that some purists might look askance at his methods."
— Connie Ogle, The Miami Herald, 3 Mar. 2022

Candidates and their backers also typically knock on doors to get signatures, but that’s not an option this year as people look askance at strangers on their doorsteps.
— Patrick Marley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 18 May 2020

Did You Know?
Askance, which etymologists believe may have been influenced by askew, comes from Middle English forms such as askaunce, a-skans, a-skaunces, meaning variously "in such a way that," "as if," "as if to say," and "artificially" or "deceptively."
 The word was first used in English in the 16th century with the meaning "sideways" or "with a sideways glance," and writers over the years have used the suggestion of someone looking askance at something to express a number of feelings from disapproval and distrust to jealousy.