sight

1 of 3

noun

ˈsīt

Synonyms of sight next

: something that is seen : spectacle

: a thing regarded as worth seeing

—usually used in plural

the sights of the city

: something ludicrous or disorderly in appearance

you look a sight

chiefly dialectal : a great number or quantity

: a good deal : lot

a far sight better

not by a damn sight

: the process, power, or function of seeing

specifically : the physical sense by which light stimuli received by the eye are interpreted by the brain and constructed into a representation of the position, shape, brightness, and usually color of objects in space

: mental or spiritual perception

: mental view

specifically : judgment

: the act of looking at or beholding

: inspection, perusal

: view, glimpse

: an observation to determine direction or position (as by a navigator)

: a perception of an object by or as if by the eye

never lost sight of the objective

: the range of vision

was nowhere in sight

: presentation of a note or draft to the maker or draftee : demand

: a device that aids the eye in aiming or in finding the direction of an object

sights plural : aspiration

set her sights on a medical career

sight

2 of 3

verb

sighted; sighting; sights

transitive verb

: to get or catch sight of

several whales were sighted

: to look at through or as if through a sight

especially : to test for straightness

: to aim by means of sights

: to equip with sights

: to adjust the sights of

intransitive verb

: to take aim

: to look carefully in a particular direction

sight

3 of 3

adjective

: based on recognition or comprehension without previous study

sight translation

: payable on presentation

a sight draft

Phrases

in sight

: at or within a reasonable distance or time

on sight

: as soon as seen

ordered to shoot on sight

out of sight

: beyond comparison

: beyond all expectation or reason

—used as a generalized expression of approval

sight for sore eyes

: one whose appearance or arrival is an occasion for joy or relief

Did you know?

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.

Example Sentences

Noun She regained sight in her left eye. The officers were ordered to shoot on sight. Keep out of sight until I tell you it's OK to come out. The child wandered out of sight. Don't let the puppy out of your sight. The rabbit disappeared from sight into the tall grass. The controls are hidden from sight behind a panel. Verb They sighted a ship in the distance. Several bears have been sighted in the area. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The plan, however, is at an early stage with no road map in sight, says the Internet Research Institute’s Kazaryan. —

Masha Borak, WIRED, 3 Mar. 2023 Many, like Voievoda, fear for loved ones still in Ukraine, feel sadness for friends and family who have died, and bitter anger toward Russia for starting a conflict with no apparent end in sight. —

John Hilliard, BostonGlobe.com, 3 Mar. 2023 Nickel City in Austin serves delicious coney dogs and chili cheese fries, but, not a chip rack in sight. —

Danny Palumbo, Bon Appétit, 2 Mar. 2023 Late in the fourth quarter Tuesday, with the end of a losing streak in sight, Spurs forward Keldon Johnson turned an ankle in a collision with Utah big man Walker Kessler. —

Jeff Mcdonald, San Antonio Express-News, 1 Mar. 2023 EarthSky says Jupiter will disappear into the sunset glare at some point in March, while Venus will remain in sight until August. —

Jordan Mendoza, USA TODAY, 1 Mar. 2023 Advertisement No end to the war is in sight a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. —

Marcus Walker, WSJ, 1 Mar. 2023 The uncompromising rhetoric and the erratic pace on the battlefield suggest that no resolution is in sight. —

Laura King And Tracy Wilkinson, Anchorage Daily News, 27 Feb. 2023 So, with an end in sight, fans can't help but wait with bated breath for one last alum to finally join the fold. —

Jacqueline Saguin, Good Housekeeping, 26 Feb. 2023

Verb

Some Muslims prefer to sight the crescent with their own eyes before declaring it a new lunar month, whereas others celebrate Eid al-Fitr based on scientific calculations of the crescent moon. —

Manal Aman, Woman's Day, 4 Apr. 2022 Next stop is southern Patagonia to sight the frostbitten Andes and icy fjords. —

Julia Zaltzman, Robb Report, 8 Apr. 2022 But the country’s religious affairs minister had announced Friday that Ramadan would start on Sunday, after Islamic astronomers in the country failed to sight the new moon. —

Samy Magdy, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Apr. 2022 In 1840, the Maori sailor Te Atu became the first New Zealander to sight the Antarctic Coast while aboard a United States expedition in the southern oceans. —

New York Times, 2 July 2021 The outdoor athletes to whom Yosemite Valley serves as a second home are always trying to sight the next audacious feat in the mountains: rock climbing, skiing, BASE jumping. —

Gregory Thomas, San Francisco Chronicle, 18 June 2021 In 1642, a Dutch explorer became the first European to sight New Zealand. —

Cynthia Ozick, The New Yorker, 14 June 2021 While Gojira-purists will sight their earlier classics From Mars To Sirius (2005) or The Way Of All Flesh (2008) as their magnum opuses, Gojira were able to craft an accessible yet heavy sound on Magma that was unlike any of their previous records. —

Quentin Singer, Forbes, 7 May 2021 Did Russian astronomer Kozyrev really sight a volcanic burst on the moon? —

Dan Q. Posin, Popular Mechanics, 11 Mar. 2021

Adjective

Officials say the goal is to improve safety by giving drivers more sight distance. —

Fred Swegles, Orange County Register, 22 Feb. 2017 Sure, there are parts that stretch credibility (a tiny but apparently evil, rabbit is one), and there are sight jokes galore. —

Joanne Engelhardt, The Mercury News, 3 May 2017 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sight.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English gesiht faculty or act of sight, thing seen; akin to Old High German gisiht sight, Old English sēon to see

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1602, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Adjective

1801, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of sight was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Phrases Containing sight

Cite this Entry

Style

“Sight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sight. Accessed 27 Mar. 2023.

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Kids Definition

sight

1 of 2 noun

ˈsīt

: something that is seen : spectacle

: something that is worth seeing

showed us the sights of the city

: something that is peculiar, funny, or messy

you're a sight

: the process, power, or function of seeing

especially : the animal sense of which the sense organ is the eye and by which the position, shape, and color of objects are perceived

: the act of seeing

knows him by sight

faints at the sight of blood

: the perception of an object within the visual field

lost sight of the plane

: the space over which a person can see

a ship came into sight

: a device that aids the eye in aiming or in finding the direction of an object

plural : aspiration sense 3a, goal sense 2

set her sights on a career in law

sight

2 of 2 verb

: to get or catch sight of

several bears were sighted

: to look at through or as if through a sight

Medical Definition

sight

noun

ˈsīt

: something that is seen

: the process, power, or function of seeing

specifically : the one of the five basic physical senses by which light stimuli received by the eye are interpreted by the brain and constructed into a representation of the position, shape, brightness, and usually color of objects in space

: a perception of an object by the eye

: the range of vision