blickten

Blickten is the simple past tense (preterite) form of the German verb blicken, which means to look, glance, or gaze. The form blickten is used with plural subjects, as in wir blickten, ihr blickten, and sie blickten, and can appear in formal address as Sie blickten.

In everyday spoken German, the preterite of blicken is relatively uncommon; speakers typically use the present perfect with haben, as in sie hat geblickt, to express past actions. The preterite remains common in written narratives, newspapers, and literature, where it helps to convey a straightforward past tense.

Conjugation notes: blicken is a regular weak verb in the preterite. The endings with the stem blick- are: ich blickte, du blicktest, er blickte; wir blickten, ihr blicktet, sie blickten. The past participle is geblickt, and the present perfect is formed with haben: er hat geblickt.

Usage and nuance: blickten denotes a completed act of looking or glancing in the past. It can describe a momentary action (looking at something briefly) or a sustained gaze, depending on context. It is not a synonym for sehen, which emphasizes the act of perceiving; blicken focuses more on the act of directing one's gaze.

See also: Blick (the noun meaning “glance” or “look”), Augenblick (a moment), blicken (infinitive), geblickt (past participle).