beholder
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of beholder
Explanation
A beholder is an observer: someone who gains awareness of things through the senses, especially sight. If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, then the person who is observing gets to decide what is beautiful. A common saying is "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder," which means beauty doesn't exist on its own but is created by observers. That famous quote can help you remember that a beholder is someone who sees or otherwise experiences things, becoming aware of them. To be a beholder, you have to pay attention. Different beholders might take in different aspects of the same event, like witnesses to a crime.
Vocabulary lists containing beholder
The Devil in the White City
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A Wizard of Earthsea
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Wishtree
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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.
Victory will then be in the eye of the beholder.
From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026
The collector’s psychology is in the eye of the beholder.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 24, 2025
Of course pragmatism lies in the eyes of the beholder.
From BBC • May 19, 2025
Now that we’re in the sort of postnominations phase of the awards season, it’s become a time for controversies, whether they’re ginned up by competing movies or not is in the eye of the beholder.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 6, 2025
Luck was in the eye of the beholder, I supposed.
From "The Season of Styx Malone" by Kekla Magoon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
