witness
Americanverb (used with object)
-
witnesses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
witnessed,
past participle, past
-
witnessing
present participle
-
to see, hear, or know by personal presence and perception.
to witness an accident.
-
to be present at (an occurrence) as a formal witness, spectator, bystander, etc..
She witnessed our wedding.
-
to bear witness to; testify to; give or afford evidence of.
-
to attest by one's signature.
He witnessed her will.
verb (used without object)
-
witnesses,
present (3rd person singular)
-
witnessed,
past participle, past
-
witnessing
present participle
noun
-
witnesses
plural
-
an individual who, being present, personally sees or perceives a thing; a beholder, spectator, or eyewitness.
-
a person or thing that affords evidence.
-
a person who gives testimony, as in a court of law.
-
a person who signs a document attesting the genuineness of its execution.
-
testimony or evidence.
to bear witness to her suffering.
- Synonyms:
- substantiation, confirmation, proof
-
(initial capital letter) a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses.
noun
-
a person who has seen or can give first-hand evidence of some event
-
a person or thing giving or serving as evidence
-
a person who testifies, esp in a court of law, to events or facts within his own knowledge
-
a person who attests to the genuineness of a document, signature, etc, by adding his own signature
-
-
to give written or oral testimony
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to be evidence or proof of
-
verb
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(tr) to see, be present at, or know at first hand
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to give or serve as evidence (of)
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(tr) to be the scene or setting of
this field has witnessed a battle
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(intr) to testify, esp in a court of law, to events within a person's own knowledge
-
(tr) to attest to the genuineness of (a document, signature, etc) by adding one's own signature
Usage
What does witness mean? A witness is someone who was present at or perceives an incident, event, or occurrence, as in Jamal was a witness to the fact that I completed all my homework. People who witness something typically do so through seeing, although they can also witness a smell or sound. In order to witness an event, one must simply be present at the time the event happened, even if the witness was not directly involved. To witness something is to see, hear, sense, or know something, as in I witnessed our dog running out the door, but I didn’t see where she went. To witness is also to testify or give evidence, especially in a court of law. Example: The key witness in the theft case was a local shop owner.
Synonym Usage
See observe.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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prewitnessnoun
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self-witnessnoun
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witnessernoun
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self-witnessedadjective
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well-witnessedadjective
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witnessableadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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witnesssimple
-
witnessessimple
-
have witnessedperfect
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has witnessedperfect
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am witnessingprogressive
-
are witnessingprogressive
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is witnessingprogressive
-
have been witnessingperfect progressive
-
has been witnessingperfect progressive
Past
-
witnessedsimple
-
had witnessedperfect
-
was witnessingprogressive
-
were witnessingprogressive
-
had been witnessingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of witness
First recorded before 950; (noun) Middle English, Old English witnes originally, “knowledge, understanding”; see wit 1, -ness; (verb) Middle English, derivative of the noun
Explanation
If you're walking down the street and see one car run a red light and plow into another, you are a witness to the accident. You saw it and can tell someone else how the accident happened. The first part of a witness's role is observation. You witness the accident. The second part is telling someone about it — bearing witness. In court, you can be a witness for the defense or prosecution. You can also witness a legal document, like a will, or a wedding conducted by the justice of the peace. Religious people use this word a lot too: being a witness in that sense is being a true believer who tries to convert others.
Vocabulary lists containing witness
"We Grow Accustomed to the Dark" by Emily Dickinson
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"Speaking Up"
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The Marvels
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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:
Special Order 40 was aimed at reassuring the city’s immigrants that they could safely report a crime or serve as a witness without fear of deportation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
"Preliminary information gathered through witness and employee interview indicates Kariem was ejected from the ride and struck other patrons before falling beneath the attraction."
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
I’d expected a similar spectacle at the theme park, or at least the charismatic witness of Bakker and his wife, Tammy Faye, whom I’d seen on television at political rallies and telethons.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
Local outlet 11Alive quoted, external a witness saying the man fell from the rollercoaster on to the roof of a haunted house attraction.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
All Swanson and the scientists could do now was watch and witness.
From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone
Gen. Rob Bonta said such arrests have long been barred because they are unconstitutional and deeply disruptive to the rule of law and the rights of victims, witnesses, defendants and other parties to court proceedings.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
The ride involved has not been specified but aerial footage from news helicopters showed the Goliath rollercoaster stopped midway, and multiple witnesses have identified the ride as the one involved in the incident.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
At Chicago, the university said a person of interest has been identified through eye witnesses, video cameras and license plate readers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
Doan Van Cong, 68, and his family spent years touring cemeteries and talking to witnesses to discover what happened to his uncle, who died in 1950, when he was in his early 20s.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
Among the witnesses who testified were many of the principal figures in the case, such as Ernest Burkhart and Dick Gregg.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
Student activist Neha Bora was also detained and taken away in a bus by police as she was leading a march close to Central Park on Friday, AFP journalists witnessed.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
The BBC's Evan Davis, who was travelling through the Eurotunnel to Calais at the time of the incident, witnessed blue light vehicles "concentrated on one of the platforms" as he entered France.
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026
Alejandro Barraza, a criminal defense and immigration attorney, said he has witnessed the effect firsthand.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
Around 30 PTI supporters in Peshawar briefly chanted slogans demanding Khan's release before being dispersed by police, only to return shortly afterwards in a game of cat and mouse, AFP journalists witnessed.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
He and Malone had just witnessed something big.
From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone
Scholars have claimed that there is something very different about the visceral experience of witnessing the state putting someone to death and the experience of watching that happen on television or a video feed.
From Slate ● Oct. 9, 2026
But the 35-year-old actor recalls witnessing the stress and insecurities experienced by friends over who had the most followers, or who followed who on social media.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
Having a brother with schizophrenia and witnessing how families navigate the legal system when dealing with mental illness has informed her approach.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
There's a knowing smile there, an indication of the kind of class he is now witnessing.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Terryl recounted in short bullet points what Rindlisbacher saw at the post-accident scene, including his witnessing of Reggie texting.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
