in the eye of

1. In the center or focal point of something, as in They were right in the eye of this controversy . This term employs eye in the sense of “a central spot,” a usage dating from the mid-1700s.

2. in the eyes of . In the view or opinion of, from the standpoint of. For example, In the eyes of his fans Elvis could do no wrong , or In the eyes of the law he was a fugitive . The eyes here allude to their function, seeing. [Late 1500s]

Example Sentences

The collector’s psychology is in the eye of the beholder.

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“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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I was developing my own powers of observation; what’s precious, Outterbridge’s work emphasized, resided in the eye of the beholder.

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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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Moles from populist and antimonopoly organizations, sent to spy on this new collective that had purposefully stuck a finger in the eye of other liberal organs like Indivisible and Demand Progress and Justice Democrats and more.

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