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

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

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

This year, there isn’t a drop of rain in sight as an unusually warm and dry spell drags on.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

Whether or not Argentina lifts the trophy again, the lesson is already out on the field in plain sight every time Messi touches the ball.

From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026

However, various legal imbroglios about ownership — including a claim by descendants of Cantinflas — led to the collection dropping from public sight in Mexico after 2007.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026

Because these mantises are large and visually impressive, many people see them as a welcome sight rather than a possible ecological problem.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026

He loved children as much as Father did, but while children took to Father on sight, Pickwick had to win them.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Instead, it appears to be needed to connect natural cues, such as sights and sounds, with the ability to recall those memories.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 12, 2026

The 25-year-old has scored 60 times in 53 games for Norway and has his sights set on the Golden Boot at this year's World Cup, with seven goals so far.

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

JPMorgan Chase JPM 0.44%increase; up pointing triangle is setting its sights on small-company deals for its next leg of growth in investment banking.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

“Today, the program in the Commission’s sights is The View,” ABC said in this week’s filing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026

In 1940, Hitler’s sights were firmly set on conquering Europe, but Roosevelt was concerned that South America might be a future target.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

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

For future elections, you can exchange a paper driving licence for a photocard, or apply for a photocard travel pass if you are aged 60 or over, disabled or registered blind or partially sighted.

From BBC ● May 5, 2026

I think it’s so short sighted of these guys to get into it for that reason.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 21, 2026

Others players can be partially sighted, classified by how far they can see -- two metres for B2 players, six for B3.

From Barron's ● Nov. 23, 2025

There was a blind innkeeper and his sighted wife, who was the cook, and their two young daughters, who worked as waitresses and maids.

From "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut

Five days after Samba’s escape, around dawn, a team of 20 zookeepers descended on a bush in the local woods, following a sighting.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

Cambodia's last confirmed tiger sighting was in 2007 camera trap footage but conservationists say they may soon be able to reintroduce the big cats.

From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026

For researchers, the age of the shark may be just as important as the sighting itself.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 26, 2026

Weeks after that public sighting, the “Euphoria” star’s stylist and self-proclaimed image architect Law Roach boldly claimed to “Access Hollywood” on the Actor Awards red carpet that “the wedding’s already happened, you missed it.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026

“Upstream,” he says after taking a sighting with his compass.

From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George

Related Words

• appearance
• eye
• perception
• view
• vision