sight
/sʌɪt
/noun
1 [mass noun] The faculty or power of seeing: Joseph lost his sight as a baby [as modifier]: a sight test...
- Likewise, the quality of each sense perception is embodied as a sense consciousness - sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch.
- Our brain gets stimulatory inputs through the special sensory stimuli of touch, sight, hearing, smell and taste.
- So in addition to the usual five senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell, the mental function is counted as the sixth.
Synonyms
eyesight, vision, eyes, faculty of sight, power of sight, ability to see, visual perception, observation
1.1The action or fact of seeing someone or something: I’ve always been scared of the sight of blood...
- We had not one look, glance, sight, glimpse, sound, whisper, touch, tap, smell, scent.
- Yet worse then all that was the fact that the very sight of him made her hunger for his touch all over again…
- The sight of the blood and the use of the blade were obviously the key to his sexuality, according to forensic psychologists.
Synonyms
view, glimpse, seeing, glance at, look at
1.2The area or distance within which someone can see or something can be seen: he now refused to let Rose out of his sight...
- For some time now dog snatching has been prevalent in our area and all dogs should be within sight at all times.
- Indeed, you can find some marvellous fishing within sight and sound of Copenhagen airport itself.
- The men were drowned within sight and sound and near touching distance of frantic relatives.
Synonyms
range of vision, field of vision, view
1.3 dated A person’s view or consideration: we are all equal in the sight of God...
- The first step on the road to heaven for each of us is to realize our true spiritual state in the sight of God.
- The prelude to this is the acknowledgement that all people are equal in the sight of God, which is the enduring logic for the juridical equality of all citizens.
- Vigilance and piety prevailed over the brute force of nature, and Juliet and John are married in the sight of God as well as of the State of New Jersey.
Synonyms
perception, judgement, belief, opinion, point of view, view, viewpoint, outlook, observation;
thought(s), thinking, way of thinking, mind, perspective, standpoint;
verdict, estimation, feeling, sentiment, impression, idea, notion
2A thing that one sees or that can be seen: John was a familiar sight in the bar for many years he was getting used to seeing unpleasant sights...
- Traditional Dutch street organs are a familiar sight in Holland as you would expect, but Territorians don't have to travel overseas to see and hear them.
- Over the next three years, the bus became a familiar sight to local residents, was visited by the Queen, and won a national award presented by Princess Anne.
- It's a familiar sight in the middle of the Christmas table or perhaps in a living room window, but their creator explains that one of the four candles should be lit during each week of December.
2.1 (sights) Places of interest to tourists and visitors in a city, town, or other place: she offered to show me the sights...
- Most of the city's top tourist sights lie within a single wide bend in the river.
- They want McDonald's to take down the outsize golden arches that obscure some of the city's tourist sights.
- Usually, it is the final stop of foreign tourists looking for pretty sights and interesting places to the north of Varna.
Synonyms
landmark, place of interest, thing worth seeing, (distinctive/prominent) feature, monument, spectacle, scene, view, area, landscape, display, show, exhibition, curiosity, rarity, beauty, marvel, wonder, splendour
informal something to write home about
2.2 (a sight) informal A person or thing having a ridiculous, repulsive, or dishevelled appearance: ‘I must look a frightful sight,’ she said...
- I must have been a sight in my blood stained wedding dress and shoes that were still oddly contorted from the crash.
- Clad in my nightgown and untied work boots, I must have been a sight.
Synonyms
eyesore, spectacle, monstrosity, horror, mess
informal fright, blot on the landscape
3 (usually sights) A device on a gun or optical instrument used for assisting a person’s precise aim or observation: there were reports of a man on the roof aiming a rifle and looking through its sights...
- And they said the same things but they added that some of their weapons, thermal sights and night vision devices needed updating.
- Today's armoured battle might take place at night, using thermal imaging devices that are in many ways better than optical sights even on a clear day.
- There are backup open sights in case the optical sight becomes damaged or is removed.
verb
1 [with object] Manage to see or observe (someone or something); catch an initial glimpse of: tell me when you sight London Bridge...
- Once prey is sighted it is caught by a short, steep dive from the perch.
- When one observer sighted a whale or whales at the surface, the other would record data.
- When a scout has sighted a rhino he radios the camp and interested parties then drive and walk to where the [usually sleeping] rhino has been seen.
Synonyms
glimpse, catch/get a glimpse of, catch sight of, see, spot, spy, notice, observe, make out, pick out, detect, have sight of
informal clap/lay/set eyes on
literary espy, behold, descry
2 [no object, with adverbial of direction] Take aim by looking through the sights of a gun: she sighted down the barrel...
- I sighted carefully down the barrel of my pistol and fired.
- I yelped and drew my pistol out of its holster faster than I have ever drawn in my life, raised the weapon and sighted down the barrel.
- He sighted over the barrel of his Winchester and blew apart the skull of the drone nearest to him.
2.1Take a detailed visual measurement of something with or as with a sight: he had to sight along the planks in the proper order to get the line right...
- You can also check the alignment of the posts in one direction by sighting from one end of the row of posts to the other.
2.2 [with object] Adjust the sight of (a firearm or optical instrument): even when using binoculars, it is difficult to sight the lens angle in reverse...
- Your rifle has been carefully sighted, and will shoot into 2 inches at 200 yards.
- Adjustment knobs allow the rifle to be sighted in at, say, 100 yards and then reset to zero.
- The point is that an accurate rifle, properly sighted in, will help every shooter, regardless of skill level, make the most of the skill he has.
Usage
On the confusion of sight and site, see site (usage).
Phrases
at first sight
catch (or get a) sight of
in sight
in (or within) sight of
in (or within) one's sights
lose sight of
not a pretty sight
on (or at) sight
out of sight
out of sight, out of mind
(get) out of my sight!
raise (or lower) one's sights
set one's sights on
a (damn, good, long etc.) sight ——
a sight for sore eyes
a sight to behold
Derivatives
sighter
- If you feel as though you need a few sighters that's OK.
- After missing a couple of early sighters, Carter kicked goals from all points of the compass.
- Then Cole got his first sighter after more good work from the industrious Neill but his shot crept wide of the far post.
Origin
Old English (ge)sihth 'something seen', of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch zicht and German Gesicht 'sight, face, appearance'. The verb dates from the mid 16th century (in sense 2 of the verb).
An Old English word related to see. Shooting has given us the expression in your sights from the device on a gun which helps you aim more precisely. The implication is that you are firmly focused on achieving your ambition. The same idea is found in to raise (or lower) your sights, meaning ‘to become more (or less) ambitious’, and to set your sights on, meaning ‘to have something as an ambition’.