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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.
Examples of site in a Sentence
Brendan Cole, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 June 2025
Following a comprehensive review and evaluation period, the program grew, expanding to 41 sites over the last 10 years.
—Asha Bandele, Essence, 25 June 2025
That youthful energy was apparent Tuesday evening, as both cautiously optimistic canvassers and ecstatic supporters lined the streets of central Brooklyn, creating a party-like atmosphere that spread from poll sites into the surrounding neighborhoods.
—Anthony Izaguirre The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 25 June 2025
While Warp has a network of 50 cross-docks and more than 10,000 vehicles, this marks the first robot-native site for the company.
—Meghan Hall, Sourcing Journal, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for site
Cite this Entry
“Site.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/site. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
site
noun
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