beholder

[bih-hohl-der]

noun

1. a person who is observing or seeing something.

   What is considered offensive often lies in the eyes of the beholder.

Word History and Origins

Origin of beholder¹

behold ( def. ) + -er ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

“Hypocrisy is in the eye of the beholder,” says Ike Silver, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Southern California’s business school, who co-authored a study on the topic.

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And, yes, the most common takeaway remains: Parents have no idea what’s going on with their teenagers — though “horror” is in the eye of the beholder.

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Of course pragmatism lies in the eyes of the beholder.

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The latter here is represented via a large puppet created by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, and the walk-through experience will take us from taverns to the back alley of a marketplace to the beholder’s lair.

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The gran-of-four explained that one of the first essays she wrote was debating the statement 'Poverty, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder' and says "that's exactly right".

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