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Synonyms

onlooker

American  
[on-look-er, awn-] / ˈɒnˌlʊk ər, ˈɔn- /

noun

  1. spectator; observer; witness.

onlooker British  
/ ˈɒnˌlʊkə /

noun

  1. a person who observes without taking part

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • onlooking adjective

Etymology

Origin of onlooker

1600–10; on + looker, after verb phrase look on

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.

King Charles moved to the groove as an onlooker said: "It's not as easy as it looks, is it?"

From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026

Any rational onlooker would assume that the Trojans had held on for good, dispatching of the Ducks.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 21, 2026

Nix had surgery last week and was an onlooker as the Broncos fell to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game on Sunday.

From Barron's • Jan. 27, 2026

An onlooker warned the agents, “You gonna let him die.”

From Salon • Jan. 14, 2026

But so breathtaking were the streets that late afternoon, with their sentinel trees and tender gardens, that the sun itself seemed to waver, unsetting, reluctant to leave; it was the onlooker whose presence weighted everything.

From "Typical American" by Gish Jen

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.