sight

American  

[sahyt] / saɪt /

noun

• sights
  plural

1. the power or faculty of seeing; perception of objects by use of the eyes; vision.

2. an act, fact, or instance of seeing.

3. an instance of looking briefly; view; glimpse.

4. one's range of vision on some specific occasion.

   Land is in sight.

5. mental perception or regard; judgment.

6. something seen or worth seeing; spectacle.

   the sights of London.

7. Informal. something unusual, surprising, shocking, or distressing.

   They were a sight after the fight.

8. Commerce.

   1. presentation of a bill of exchange.

      a draft payable at two months after sight.

   2. a showing of goods, especially gems, held periodically for wholesalers.

9. Older Use. a great deal.

   It's a sight better to work than to starve.

10. an observation taken with a surveying, navigating, or other instrument to ascertain an exact position or direction.

11. any of various mechanical or optical viewing devices, as on a firearm or surveying instrument, for aiding the eye in aiming.

12. Obsolete. skill; insight.

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verb (used with object)

• sights,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sighted,
  past participle,  past
• sighting
  present participle

1. to see, glimpse, notice, or observe.

   to sight a ship to the north.

2. to take a sight or observation of (a stake, coastline, etc.), especially with surveying or navigating instruments.

3. to direct or aim by a sight or sights, as a firearm.

4. to provide with sights or adjust the sights of, as a gun.

verb (used without object)

• sights,
  present (3rd person singular)
• sighted,
  past participle,  past
• sighting
  present participle

1. to aim or observe through a sight.

2. to look carefully in a certain direction.

idioms

1. on / upon sight, immediately upon seeing.

   to shoot him on sight;

   to recognize someone on sight.

2. not by a long sight, definitely not.

   Is that all? Not by a long sight.

3. at first sight, at the first glimpse; at once.

   It was love at first sight.

4. in plain sight. see in plain sight.

5. sight for sore eyes, someone or something whose appearance on the scene is cause for relief or gladness.

6. sight unseen, without previous examination.

   to buy something sight unseen.

7. catch sight of, to get a glimpse of; espy.

   We caught sight of the lake below.

8. know by sight, to recognize (a person or thing) seen previously.

   I know him by sight, but I know nothing about him.

9. at sight,

   1. immediately upon seeing, especially without referring elsewhere for assurance, further information, etc..

      to translate something at sight.

   2. Commerce. on presentation.

      a draft payable at sight.

10. out of sight,

    1. beyond one's range of vision.

    2. Informal. beyond reason; exceedingly high.

       The price is out of sight.

    3. Slang. (often used as an interjection) fantastic; marvelous.

       a ceremony so glamorous it was out of sight.

       Oh wow! Out of sight!

sight British  

/ saɪt /

noun

1. the power or faculty of seeing; perception by the eyes; vision

2. the act or an instance of seeing

3. the range of vision

   within sight of land

4. range of mental vision; point of view; judgment

   in his sight she could do nothing wrong

5. a glimpse or view (esp in the phrases catch sight of, lose sight of )

6. anything that is seen

7. (often plural) anything worth seeing; spectacle

   the sights of London

8. informal anything unpleasant or undesirable to see

   his room was a sight!

9. any of various devices or instruments used to assist the eye in making alignments or directional observations, esp such a device used in aiming a gun

10. an observation or alignment made with such a device

11. an opportunity for observation

12. obsolete insight or skill

13. informal a great deal

    she's a sight too good for him

14. a person or thing that one is pleased or relieved to see

15. 1. as soon as seen

    2. on presentation

       a bill payable at sight

16. to be familiar with the appearance of without having personal acquaintance

    I know Mr Brown by sight but we have never spoken

17. informal on no account; not at all

18. 1. slang not visible

    2. extreme or very unusual

    3. ( as interj. )

       that's marvellous!

19. to have (a specified goal) in mind; aim for

20. without having seen the object at issue

    to buy a car sight unseen

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verb

1. (tr) to see, view, or glimpse

2. (tr)

   1. to furnish with a sight or sights

   2. to adjust the sight of

3. to aim (a firearm) using the sight

sight More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing sight

• at first blush (sight)
• at sight
• can't stand the sight of
• catch sight of
• heave into sight
• in sight
• know by sight
• lose sight of
• love at first sight
• lower one's sights
• on sight
• out of sight
• raise one's sights
• second sight
• see the sights
• set one's sights on
• twenty-twenty hindsight

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sighter
  noun
• undersight
  noun
• resight
  verb (used with object)
• sightable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sights
  plural

Participles

• sighting
  present
• sighted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sight
  simple
• sights
  simple
• have sighted
  perfect
• has sighted
  perfect
• am sighting
  progressive
• are sighting
  progressive
• is sighting
  progressive
• have been sighting
  perfect progressive
• has been sighting
  perfect progressive

Past

• sighted
  simple
• had sighted
  perfect
• was sighting
  progressive
• were sighting
  progressive
• had been sighting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sight
  simple
• will have sighted
  perfect
• will be sighting
  progressive
• will have been sighting
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of sight

First recorded before 950; Middle English (noun); Old English sihth (more often gesihth, gesiht; cognate with German Gesicht face; cf. y-), derivative of sēon “to see ¹ ”; see -th ¹

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Explanation

Your sight is your ability to see. If you're maneuvering through the house at midnight using your shins to locate the furniture, you'll appreciate your sight that much more. You could also turn a light on. Sight has many different senses. It can mean the range of your vision, as in when you freak out when your little puppy goes out of sight. You can "take in the sights," meaning you're seeing all the special attractions of a town (also known as sightseeing). Sight can also be a verb, as when you sight a celebrity at your local taco stand, or when you sight your target using the sight on your gun, before you shoot.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sight sights sighted sighting

Their research reveals how this molecule works alongside thyroid hormones to help form the part of the eye responsible for our sharpest sight, challenging a scientific explanation that has stood for roughly 30 years.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026

Spurs fan Rosewen had similar views: "They can offer attractions to tempt people through the gates but we're losing sight of football and the importance of winning."

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026

In this way, “bee smell is converted into human sight, and scents too subtle for human noses are made visible to the eye.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Every sight, smell and sound — even felt texture — may shape the conversation, shift mood, or spark an insight.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026

She was almost out of sight now in among the trees, as Mutti came stumbling back towards us.

From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo

Its ghostly skull may be one of Antarctica's most unusual sights, but the gradual transformation of the ice that shapes it tells an even more important story.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2026

Like those pulled by devout religion or extreme acts of faith, Morrison and Nelson are powerless before their distinct higher calling — especially with the literal highest calling of all, Everest, in their sights.

From Salon ● Nov. 1, 2026

And McDermott is keen for his side to stick to the blueprint that helped them thrash France 82-0 last weekend to keep slim prospects of a semi-final berth within their sights.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

He set his sights on Brazil, where Russian diesel was displacing more expensive American fuel.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

Then she let me wander around and see the sights.

From "The World According to Humphrey" by Betty G. Birney

Hammerheads were sighted off the Southern California coast in 2015, during the last strong El Niño cycle, California State University Long Beach Shark Lab expert Chris Lowe said in an email.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026

The Pakistani navy published an alert Friday warning that a mine had been sighted in the strait off Oman.

From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026

Shortly after noon on March 17, about 170 miles off the coast of Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands, crew members said they sighted a blue boat in the distance.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026

After D-Day, with B-25s sighted over Salonika, Doundoulakis met one of his neighbors on the street: “Helias, do you see?” he cried.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026

I sighted her easily enough, dancing next to one of the many drummers.

From "The Ugly One" by Leanne Statland Ellis

On Sunday, Environment Minister Joao Paulo Capobianco flew over the affected areas, sighting hundreds of fires in the middle of the protected forest.

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

Officers said further inquiries identified a sighting of her at Manchester Piccadilly bus station at 10:36 BST on 14 September.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

The sea snake’s possible sighting is likely connected to this summer’s warm ocean water, said Hayley Crowell, a snake expert at San Diego State University.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

The Trafford Centre sighting was later confirmed on Saturday.

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026

The article was about several of the town’s businesses embracing the recent tourism boom brought to Lily by the sighting of the bird.

From "Where Things Come Back" by John Corey Whaley

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Related Words

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