Aperçu

Word of the Day for Monday, April 16, 2012

aperçu \a-per-SY\, noun:

1. A hasty glance; a glimpse.
2. An immediate estimate or judgment; understanding; insight.
3. An outline or summary.

Dr. Lornier, if you would be kind enough to give us a summary of your accomplishments and an aperçu of your plans for the next two months.
-- Mona Risk, To Love a Hero

He was going to lecture that afternoon on Prosperity and, since I was unable to go to the lecture, he was good enough to give me an aperçu of the situation.
-- Ford Madox Ford, It Was the Nightingale

Aperçu literally means "perceived" in French. It entered English in the 1820s.

Thanks to: http://www.dictionary.com/