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Synonyms

observe

American

[uhb-zurv] / əbˈzɜrv /

verb (used with object)

to see, watch, perceive, or notice.

He observed the passersby in the street.

Antonyms:

ignore
to regard with attention, especially so as to see or learn something.

I want you to observe her reaction to the judge's question.

Synonyms:

note

Antonyms:

ignore
to watch, view, or note for a scientific, official, or other special purpose.

to observe an eclipse.

Antonyms:

ignore
to state by way of comment; remark.

He observed frequently that clerks were not as courteous as they used to be.

Synonyms:

say, mention
to keep or maintain in one's action, conduct, etc..

You must observe quiet.
to obey, comply with, or conform to.

to observe laws.

Synonyms:

fulfill, follow

Antonyms:

ignore
to show regard for by some appropriate procedure, ceremony, etc..

to observe Palm Sunday.

Synonyms:

keep, celebrate

Antonyms:

ignore
to perform duly or solemnize (ceremonies, rites, etc.).

Antonyms:

ignore
to note or inspect closely for an omen or sign of future events.

verb (used without object)

to notice.
to act as an observer.
to remark or comment (usually followed by on orupon ).

observe British

/ əbˈzɜːv /

verb

(tr; may take a clause as object) to see; perceive; notice

we have observed that you steal
(when tr, may take a clause as object) to watch (something) carefully; pay attention to (something)
to make observations of (something), esp scientific ones
to make a comment or remark

the speaker observed that times had changed
(tr) to abide by, keep, or follow (a custom, tradition, law, holiday, etc)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Synonym Usage

Observe, witness imply paying strict attention to what one sees or perceives. Both are “continuative” in action. To observe is to mark or be attentive to something seen, heard, etc.; to consider carefully; to watch steadily: to observe the behavior of birds, a person's pronunciation. To witness, formerly to be present when something was happening, has added the idea of having observed with sufficient care to be able to give an account as evidence: to witness an accident.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of observe

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English observen, from Middle French observer, from Latin observāre “to watch, regard, attend to,” equivalent to ob- ob- + servāre “to keep, save, pay heed to”

Explanation

Observe is often used to mean “remark” or “comment.” When trying to start up a conversation with an attractive stranger, you might observe that it’s raining outside (but hopefully you’ll come up with something more interesting to say). Observe has several secondary meanings, one of which is “notice” or “discover.” If you start a conversation with that attractive stranger, you’ll probably observe whether he or she seems interested in talking to you. Observe can also mean “watch carefully with great interest”; you might be tempted to observe the attractive stranger in this manner, but that might make him or her uncomfortable. Try to stay cool.

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Vocabulary lists containing observe

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

observe observes observed observing

The search for neutrinos began long before technology existed to observe them.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

Both Lantratova and Lubinets called for the initiative to be repeated elsewhere, and Ukraine repeatedly said it would be prepared to observe similar ceasefires on a national level too.

From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026

Picnic mats and drone photography were banned, and noisy, mobile-phone-toting tourists were kept well away from the graves and cautioned to observe respectful silence.

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026

The conditions created the perfect situation to observe effects of the shot.

From Slate ● Nov. 1, 2026

The water butterflies who’ve ventured off to observe us scurry back to their flock.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

Watching a recent Maine stop for the Atlantic, Russell Berman observes Sanders in action: “Before I started talking about it, people would say, ‘What the hell is an oligarch?’ he told the crowd in Bangor.

From Slate ● Nov. 3, 2026

Previous rebounds have been powerful, it observes, with 32% jumps and outperformance of the S&P 500 by 30%.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

States have long had the option to opt out of daylight saving time with congressional approval, although most of America observes it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2026

Flavio Bolsonaro wears a black shirt and shoulders a backpack as he disembarks the plane alongside his wife and two daughters, AFP observes.

From Barron's ● Oct. 28, 2026

The boy observes him, tall and solemn, twelve years older than the night he first crept in with his stone-eyed master.

From "Grendel" by John Gardner

When the researchers introduced this modified system into cultured liver cancer cells, they observed the anticancer compound forming inside the cells.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 4, 2026

Instead, they discovered that LDL concentrations in treated older rats also fell to levels observed in young animals.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 3, 2026

“Today, some propose granting these systems rights, or even legal personhood,” the pontiff observed in a brief address at a Vatican-sponsored conference on AI on Friday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026

“The real threats from AI products today include cybersecurity, fraud and reduced productivity,” McNamee observed.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026

“These children are horrible,” Tolstoy shortly observed, thus displaying the deep insight into human nature that would characterize his later work.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

However, these events are so uncommon that observing them requires exceptionally sensitive equipment.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

Spain was observing the second of three days of national mourning on Friday, with the public demanding answers just weeks before an early general election on November 29.

From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026

In 2005, as Northern Ireland's peace process was being cemented, the group was observing a ceasefire.

From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026

He wrote in a May 1949 letter that his wife and another unnamed individual “reported observing six objects over Catalina Island on the night of April 28, 1949,” according to the files released Friday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

Not like observing birds soaring, or the creek rushing, or clouds chasing.

From "A Bird Will Soar" by Alison Green Myers

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023