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Cite, Sight, and Site
As homophones—words that sound alike but are distinct— cite, sight, and site are easily confused, but they have different meanings, uses, and origins.
Cite is most often encountered in the sense of "to name in a citation"—that is, a line or short section taken from a piece of writing or a speech; it may also mean "to mention as an example" or "to order to appear in a court of law." Cite is from the Latin citare, "to rouse, call on, summon," source too of citation and recite.
Most of the senses of sight are concerned with seeing. A wonderful spectacle might be described as a sight, as might the general capacity to see anything ("my sight is not as good as it once was"). Sight is also used in a number of fixed phrases, such as "out of sight, out of mind," "sight unseen," and "set one's sights on." Sight comes from Old English gesiht, meaning "the faculty or act of sight, thing seen."
Site is most often concerned with location; it is related to situate, "to locate," and situation, "relative position or combination of circumstances at a particular moment." A building site is the place where a building is, or will be, located. In contemporary English, site is frequently used as a shortened form of website, to refer to the location of a group of web pages. Site comes from Latin situs, meaning "place, position, site."
Associating citation with cite, eyesight with sight, and situate with site may be helpful in applying these correctly.
Synonyms
Examples of sight in a Sentence
Andy Fies, ABC News, 7 Apr. 2024
The lack of sewer lines means outhouses are a common sight.
—Tyrone Beason, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2024
The Kansas City Royals’ starting rotation has been a sight to behold this season.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 7 Apr. 2024
Without the summer heat, Venice and its lagoon offer truly extraordinary sights and natural spectacles.
—Maddalena Fossati, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Apr. 2024
But for uninterrupted views of the eclipse, NASA is offering a live telescope feed without commentary, featuring sights from across the continent—Mexico, Texas, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, New York and Maine.
—Carlyn Kranking, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Apr. 2024
In Milwaukee, the moon will cover almost 90%, yet those who have seen prior eclipses say the allure of the sight in its totality is literally the difference between night and day.
—David Clarey, Journal Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2024
More recently, parents’ rights groups have set their sights on gender and sexuality being taught in classrooms, and conservative politicians across the country have made parents’ rights a campaign priority.
—Jenavieve Hatch, Sacramento Bee, 4 Apr. 2024
Ketamine has a variety of effects on the body including hallucinations, distorting perceptions of sight and sound, and making the person feel disconnected from their body and environment, the DEA says.
—Minyvonne Burke, NBC News, 4 Apr. 2024
USA TODAY, 4 Apr. 2024
The last known wolf sighting in the Lower Peninsula was in 2014 by biologists from the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians.
—Mike Stunson, Kansas City Star, 3 Apr. 2024
The start is determined by a moon sighting committee in Saudi Arabia, and Ramadan begins the day after the committee spots the new crescent moon.
—Marina Johnson, The Indianapolis Star, 8 Mar. 2024
Mid-September to early November and early February to the end of March are generally considered the ‘best’ times for a northern lights sighting, combined with far more daylight to enjoy the Arctic scenery, wonderful sunrises, and daytime activities.
—David Nikel, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024
Jesse was last sighted alive in July 2016 at his residence in Buckeye.
—The Arizona Republic, 26 Mar. 2024
Entertainment & Arts Another Kate Middleton sighting?
—Nardine Saad, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2024
Stevens Creek Park is also a popular site for birding, where over 125 avian species have been sighted and recorded to date.
—Lisa Thorn, The Mercury News, 4 Feb. 2024
Tornadoes were sighted in southern Indiana near Hanover and Switzerland County.
—John Tufts, The Indianapolis Star, 15 Mar. 2024
Hannah Sacks, Peoplemag, 26 Feb. 2024
In an earlier video shared on his Instagram Story, Cohen was baffled to discover a toy that shows flashcards with a sight word and photo for toddler daughter Lucy Eve, 20 months, also included a set of cards with car brands and their logos.
—Angela Andaloro, Peoplemag, 16 Jan. 2024
Officials say the goal is to improve safety by giving drivers more sight distance.
—Fred Swegles, Orange County Register, 22 Feb. 2017
Sure, there are parts that stretch credibility (a tiny but apparently evil, rabbit is one), and there are sight jokes galore.
—Joanne Engelhardt, The Mercury News, 3 May 2017
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sight.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near sight
Cite this Entry
“Sight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sight. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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sight
1 of 2 nounsight
2 of 2 verbMedical Definition
sight
noun
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