: to look directly at (someone who is also looking at one)
I wasn't afraid to look him (right) in the eye and tell him just what I thought of him!
: to look directly at someone
She looked me (right) in the eye and told me I was fired.
Examples of look (someone) in the eye in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 12 May 2025
The traditional players in this arena (from business schools to consulting firms), are no longer the only answer.
Consider the senior executive who is coached to look someone in the eye; speak in a calm manner; and drop the tone of their voice at the end of each sentence.
—Lynette Tan, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025
As people became more and more fixated on their electronic devices, the ability to look someone in the eye and converse withered.
—Jeanne Phillips, The Mercury News, 26 Apr. 2024
The ability to show up at a branch and look someone in the eye can help.
—Ron Lieber, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2023
Spicer never wanted any barista to have to look someone in the eye with nothing to offer.
—Rachel Fradette, The Indianapolis Star, 7 Mar. 2022
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Idiom
Skarsgard’s Murderbot is awkward in a totally different way, unsure how to deal with emotion, tortured just by having to look someone in the eye.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 12 May 2025
The traditional players in this arena (from business schools to consulting firms), are no longer the only answer.
Consider the senior executive who is coached to look someone in the eye; speak in a calm manner; and drop the tone of their voice at the end of each sentence.
—Lynette Tan, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025
As people became more and more fixated on their electronic devices, the ability to look someone in the eye and converse withered.
—Jeanne Phillips, The Mercury News, 26 Apr. 2024
The ability to show up at a branch and look someone in the eye can help.
—Ron Lieber, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2023
Spicer never wanted any barista to have to look someone in the eye with nothing to offer.
—Rachel Fradette, The Indianapolis Star, 7 Mar. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Look (someone) in the eye.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/look%20%28someone%29%20in%20the%20eye. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
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