observer
Americannoun
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someone or something that observes.
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a delegate to an assembly or gathering, who is sent to observe and report but not to take part officially in its activities.
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U.S. Air Force.
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a member of an aircrew, other than the pilot, holding an aeronautical rating.
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a person who maintains observation in an aircraft during flight.
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Also called air observer,. Also called aircraft observer. U.S. Army. a person who serves in an aircraft as a reconnoiterer and directs artillery fire.
Other Word Forms
- interobserver noun
- observership noun
Etymology
Origin of observer
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.
“There’s no historical precedent in modern California history for a governor’s race with such a large field or such an amorphous field of candidates,” said longtime political observer Dan Schnur.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026
The untrained observer might also wonder why private companies with shareholders wouldn’t try to maximize profits by charging as much as they could.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 10, 2026
Another longtime observer of the Chinese military told AFP it was "not clear at all how to read it".
From Barron's • Mar. 9, 2026
At age 86, Mr. Bellocchio remains an angry observer of his country’s historic failures, but one who sustains his cool in the storytelling.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 19, 2026
Because Tycho was such a superb observer and had built such accurate instruments, this was the most sensitive search for parallax yet undertaken.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
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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.