lay eyes on

Idioms  

1. Also,. Look at, see, as in As soon as I laid eyes on him I knew he would be perfect for the lead in our play, or I'd never set eyes on such a beautiful gown. The first term dates from the early 1200s and the third from the late 1300s; the second, using clap in the sense of “a sudden movement,” dates from the first half of the 1800s.

---

Example Sentences

Strong words from someone I had never met and would more than likely never lay eyes on again.

From Salon • Mar. 29, 2024

But today, the residents largely remember her arrival as a moving gesture of solidarity from someone they never expected to lay eyes on.

From New York Times • Sep. 18, 2022

It was there, on the outskirts of Jordan, Montana, that Brown became the first human to lay eyes on the monstrous form of the T. rex.

From Slate • Jul. 4, 2022

“Other adults and teachers are able to lay eyes on these kids,” she said, and they are “bringing up concerns about behavioral issues and emotional issues.”

From Washington Post • Mar. 6, 2022

My mother went over to school to personally lay eyes on the kid, wanting to assess what kind of threat he posed.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama