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• lookout
  lookout

  noun

  the act of looking out or keeping watch.
• Lookout
  Lookout

  noun

  Cape Lookout, a sandy reef in the Outer Banks, off eastern North Carolina, southwest of Cape Hatteras: known for its lighthouse.

lookout

¹ American  

[look-aut] / ˈlʊkˌaʊt /

noun

• lookouts
  plural

1. the act of looking out or keeping watch.

2. a watch kept, as for something that may happen.

3. a person or group keeping a watch.

   Synonyms:

   guard, patrol, sentry, sentinel

4. a station or place from which a watch is kept.

5. an object of care or concern.

   That's not my lookout.

6. tailpiece.

7. Chiefly British. view; prospect; outlook.

   The business lookout is far from optimistic.

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Lookout ² American  

[look-aut] / ˈlʊkˌaʊt /

noun

1. Cape Lookout, a sandy reef in the Outer Banks, off eastern North Carolina, southwest of Cape Hatteras: known for its lighthouse.

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lookout British  

/ ˈlʊkˌaʊt /

noun

1. the act of keeping watch against danger, etc

2. a person or persons instructed or employed to keep such a watch, esp on a ship

3. a strategic point from which a watch is kept

4. informal worry or concern

   that's his lookout

5. outlook, chances, or view

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verb

1. to heed one's behaviour; be careful

   look out for the children's health

2. to be on the watch

   look out for my mother at the station

3. (tr) to search for and find

   I'll look out some curtains for your new house

4. to face in a particular direction

   the house looks out over the moor

lookout Idioms  

1. see keep an eye out for (sharp lookout); on the lookout. Also see entries beginning with look out.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• lookouts
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of lookout

First recorded in 1690–1700; noun use of verb phrase look out

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Explanation

The neighborhood kids might use a tree house as a lookout, from which they can keep an eye out for the local bully. A lookout is usually so high that a person can see for a long distance in many directions when she stands on or in it. Armies sometimes use lookouts to scout for approaching troops, and navy ships include a lookout at the top of a tall mast, also called a "crow's nest." Lookout can also be spelled as a hyphenated word, "look-out," and used as well to refer to the person whose job it is to stay in the lookout and keep watch.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lookout Lookout lookouts

Kaplan hasn’t completely ignored stocks, though, and is always on the lookout for bargains.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026

She said the group was always on the lookout for new arrivals and had already recorded the willow emerald damselfly, the southern oak bush cricket and the purple emperor butterfly, as more species travelled north.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

County health officials urged people to be on the lookout for symptoms of heat stroke or heat exhaustion, such as dizziness, nausea, rapid heartbeat and confusion.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

"No helmsman or lookout was posted on the bridge and the second officer, who had only recently joined the vessel and lacked experience, was left alone on watch," the report said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026

“Natalie’s standing lookout for us,” he assured Mom.

From "The Strangers" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Lookout Hill: Yarn and Art Supplies – I passed this shop a few times and couldn’t get over how charming it looked.

From Salon ● Mar. 31, 2026

In addition to the New York City apartment, Dreyer and Fichera also shared a stunning beach house in Point Lookout, N.Y., which was purchased back in 2021 for $2.5 million.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 28, 2025

Appeared in the November 4, 2025, print edition as 'Wall Street Intensifies Lookout For Fraud'.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2025

These include restaurants called Marva's and Pelican Lookout.

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2025

Then finally the command came for them to take the frontline trenches at the base of Missionary Ridge, which towered like a steep wall opposite Lookout.

From "Across Five Aprils" by Irene Hunt

Instead, they act as digital lookouts who hunt for coveted vintage apartments that are otherwise hard to find without expertise.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026

They had plate numbers and makes and models of cars, and sometimes even VINs; they had scouts and lookouts; they had canvassed businesses and compiled surveillance footage.

From Slate ● Oct. 27, 2025

Britain's marine safety body has called for a "radical rethink" over the use of ship lookouts "in the digital age" following a fatal collision in the North Sea and three other incidents.

From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2025

They were peering over their balconies, huddled at the top of lookouts or drinking coffee, eyes turned to the sky for a hint of color — any color.

From New York Times ● May 18, 2024

“Our lookouts noted you shortly after you landed. As you were the crawlers’ find, we let them present you,” she said.

From "Gregor the Overlander" by Suzanne Collins

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