eyewitness

noun

eye·​wit·​ness ˈī-ˈwit-nəs 

: one who sees an occurrence or an object

especially : one who gives a report of what has happened

Examples of eyewitness in a Sentence

The police are hoping to locate an eyewitness to the shooting.

He was able to give an eyewitness account of the shooting.

Recent Examples on the Web

Officials said Vining was identified as a suspect in the stabbing through the use of DNA analysis, video surveillance, cell site investigation and eyewitness accounts. — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 20 Aug. 2026

Tooson said that there are no eyewitnesses to the shooting and that Porter’s death was not captured on video. — James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 18 Aug. 2026

Most eyewitnesses are no longer alive The story of the drive-by shooting has long gripped the hip-hop community, partly because no one was charged until Davis was indicted in 2023. — Jessica Hill, Chicago Tribune, 17 Aug. 2026

McEnroe’s testimony is particularly important, Sullivan explained, because while some of the other eyewitnesses were MSG guards or had been employed by MSG at some point, McEnroe had no such ties to the defendant. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1539, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for eyewitness

• fitness
• witness
• unfitness

Kids Definition

eyewitness

noun

eye·​wit·​ness -ˈwit-nəs 

: a person who sees an occurrence and is able to give a report of it

Legal Definition

eyewitness

noun

eye·​wit·​ness

: one who sees an occurrence or object or sometimes experiences it through other senses (as hearing) and usually reports or testifies about it