ob·ser·vant
əb-ˈzər-vənt 
1
a
: paying strict attention : watchful
an observant spectator
b
: keen, perceptive
observant of the mistakes of others
Good reporters are keenly observant of everything around them.
observantly
adverb
obsolete
: an assiduous or obsequious servant or attendant
Synonyms
Examples of observant in a Sentence
Adjective
A particularly observant child, he noticed even the slightest changes in the classroom.
Good reporters are keenly observant of everything around them.
The family is strictly observant.
Recent Examples on the Web
Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 8 Apr. 2024
Valia proves to be as observant as her lead character, harnessing every element of the film to clearly articulate how her experience in the trenches is governed by others.
—Stephen Saito, Variety, 16 Mar. 2024
Most of the families who have expressed interest in Emet are not from traditionally observant backgrounds, and their kids are not coming out of religious Jewish day schools.
—Emma Green, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2024
Self-awareness, thoughtfulness, and being observant are important skills for professionals when tackling complex problems.
—Britney Porter, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024
He was born in 1923 into a strictly observant Jewish family in Pittsburgh and was expected to become a Rabbi like his father, a Talmud scholar.
—Christian House, CNN, 22 Feb. 2024
To Koudelka, his finest pictures, like the image of a powerful white horse bowing its head as if listening to reason from a diminutive squatting Romani man, represent the strokes of serendipity that happened to an observant man who walked many miles.
—Nicholas Dawidoff, The New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2024
But as their population has swelled to more than one million people, roughly 13 percent of Israel’s population — up from 40,000, or 5 percent, in 1948 — even many observant Jews who serve in the military have expressed resentment.
—Johnatan Reiss, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
At best, at mid-eclipse, very observant people will notice a dark shading on the moon’s face.
—Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 22 Mar. 2024
Danny Horn, EW.com, 4 Jan. 2024
Here is a brief summary of when Easter and related events take place in 2024, and what those days mean to observants.
—Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 12 Feb. 2024
Shrove Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras, marks not only the last day of Carnival but also the last day observants can eat meat and enjoy other indulgences before Lent.
—Elizabeth Djinis, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Feb. 2024
Franklyn describes herself as creative, observant, and a daydreamer.
—Alicia Adamczyk, Fortune, 11 Dec. 2023
Naturally grounded as earth signs, Virgos are sympathetic, focused and observant, and five of them have been named PEOPLE's Sexiest Man Alive: Mark Harmon, the late Sean Connery, Richard Gere, Keanu Reeves and Idris Elba.
—Zoey Lyttle, Peoplemag, 2 Nov. 2023
The Likud electorate has historically been the Mizrahi (Jews of Middle Eastern and North African descent), the religiously observant, the noncollege-educated and the poor.
—Ruth Margalit, New York Times, 27 Sep. 2023
The characters in this collection are all witnesses, hesitant but perceptive, observant sometimes to the point of paralysis.
—Annie Berke, Washington Post, 28 Aug. 2023
During this time, the religiously-observant Hrangchal mixed his studies with work as an assembly worker at a factory, all the while keeping up his outdoor sports practice.
—Etgar Lefkovits, Sun Sentinel, 30 Mar. 2023
Adjective
Keep personal information to yourself, and be observant when dealing with partners or those who make impossible offers.
—Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 8 Apr. 2024
Valia proves to be as observant as her lead character, harnessing every element of the film to clearly articulate how her experience in the trenches is governed by others.
—Stephen Saito, Variety, 16 Mar. 2024
Most of the families who have expressed interest in Emet are not from traditionally observant backgrounds, and their kids are not coming out of religious Jewish day schools.
—Emma Green, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2024
Self-awareness, thoughtfulness, and being observant are important skills for professionals when tackling complex problems.
—Britney Porter, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024
He was born in 1923 into a strictly observant Jewish family in Pittsburgh and was expected to become a Rabbi like his father, a Talmud scholar.
—Christian House, CNN, 22 Feb. 2024
To Koudelka, his finest pictures, like the image of a powerful white horse bowing its head as if listening to reason from a diminutive squatting Romani man, represent the strokes of serendipity that happened to an observant man who walked many miles.
—Nicholas Dawidoff, The New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2024
But as their population has swelled to more than one million people, roughly 13 percent of Israel’s population — up from 40,000, or 5 percent, in 1948 — even many observant Jews who serve in the military have expressed resentment.
—Johnatan Reiss, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
At best, at mid-eclipse, very observant people will notice a dark shading on the moon’s face.
—Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 22 Mar. 2024
Noun
Raised to be independent and observant, the teenager is a misfit in traditional Victorian society.
—Danny Horn, EW.com, 4 Jan. 2024
Here is a brief summary of when Easter and related events take place in 2024, and what those days mean to observants.
—Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 12 Feb. 2024
Shrove Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras, marks not only the last day of Carnival but also the last day observants can eat meat and enjoy other indulgences before Lent.
—Elizabeth Djinis, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Feb. 2024
Franklyn describes herself as creative, observant, and a daydreamer.
—Alicia Adamczyk, Fortune, 11 Dec. 2023
Naturally grounded as earth signs, Virgos are sympathetic, focused and observant, and five of them have been named PEOPLE's Sexiest Man Alive: Mark Harmon, the late Sean Connery, Richard Gere, Keanu Reeves and Idris Elba.
—Zoey Lyttle, Peoplemag, 2 Nov. 2023
The Likud electorate has historically been the Mizrahi (Jews of Middle Eastern and North African descent), the religiously observant, the noncollege-educated and the poor.
—Ruth Margalit, New York Times, 27 Sep. 2023
The characters in this collection are all witnesses, hesitant but perceptive, observant sometimes to the point of paralysis.
—Annie Berke, Washington Post, 28 Aug. 2023
During this time, the religiously-observant Hrangchal mixed his studies with work as an assembly worker at a factory, all the while keeping up his outdoor sports practice.
—Etgar Lefkovits, Sun Sentinel, 30 Mar. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'observant.' 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 observant
Cite this Entry
“Observant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/observant. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
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