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

Local and state officials have rejected Noem and DHS’s explanation, arguing eyewitness video shows the woman was veering away from the officer when she was shot. —Jared Gans, The Hill, 12 Jan. 2026

But eyewitness accounts and human rights groups paint a different picture. —Hira Humayun, CNN Money, 12 Jan. 2026

According to the Hindu, local eyewitnesses have said that the elephant attacks mostly at night while people are sleeping, and residents have been using firecrackers and patrol teams to keep the animal away from heavily populated areas. —Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 11 Jan. 2026

At the same time, local officials and residents, including some eyewitnesses to the incident, declared the shooting unnecessary and criminal. —Michael McAuliffe, Sun Sentinel, 11 Jan. 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