witness

American  

[wit-nis] / ˈwɪt nɪs /

verb (used with object)

• witnesses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• witnessed,
  past participle,  past
• witnessing
  present participle

1. 

   to see, hear, or know by personal presence and perception.

   to witness an accident.

   Synonyms:

   note, notice, mark, watch, perceive

2. to be present at (an occurrence) as a formal witness, spectator, bystander, etc..

   She witnessed our wedding.

3. to bear witness to; testify to; give or afford evidence of.

4. to attest by one's signature.

   He witnessed her will.

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verb (used without object)

• witnesses,
  present (3rd person singular)
• witnessed,
  past participle,  past
• witnessing
  present participle

1. to bear witness; testify; give or afford evidence.

noun

• witnesses
  plural

1. an individual who, being present, personally sees or perceives a thing; a beholder, spectator, or eyewitness.

2. a person or thing that affords evidence.

3. a person who gives testimony, as in a court of law.

4. a person who signs a document attesting the genuineness of its execution.

5. testimony or evidence.

   to bear witness to her suffering.

   Synonyms:

   substantiation, confirmation, proof

6. (initial capital letter) a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses.

witness British  

/ ˈwɪtnɪs /

noun

1. a person who has seen or can give first-hand evidence of some event

2. a person or thing giving or serving as evidence

3. a person who testifies, esp in a court of law, to events or facts within his own knowledge

4. a person who attests to the genuineness of a document, signature, etc, by adding his own signature

5. 1. to give written or oral testimony

   2. to be evidence or proof of

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verb

1. (tr) to see, be present at, or know at first hand

2. to give or serve as evidence (of)

3. (tr) to be the scene or setting of

   this field has witnessed a battle

4. (intr) to testify, esp in a court of law, to events within a person's own knowledge

5. (tr) to attest to the genuineness of (a document, signature, etc) by adding one's own signature

Usage

What does witness mean? A witness is someone who was present at or perceives an incident, event, or occurrence, as in Jamal was a witness to the fact that I completed all my homework. People who witness something typically do so through seeing, although they can also witness a smell or sound. In order to witness an event, one must simply be present at the time the event happened, even if the witness was not directly involved. To witness something is to see, hear, sense, or know something, as in I witnessed our dog running out the door, but I didn’t see where she went. To witness is also to testify or give evidence, especially in a court of law. Example: The key witness in the theft case was a local shop owner.

Synonym Usage

See observe.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prewitness
  noun
• self-witness
  noun
• witnesser
  noun
• self-witnessed
  adjective
• well-witnessed
  adjective
• witnessable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• witnesses
  plural

Participles

• witnessing
  present
• witnessed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• witness
  simple
• witnesses
  simple
• have witnessed
  perfect
• has witnessed
  perfect
• am witnessing
  progressive
• are witnessing
  progressive
• is witnessing
  progressive
• have been witnessing
  perfect progressive
• has been witnessing
  perfect progressive

Past

• witnessed
  simple
• had witnessed
  perfect
• was witnessing
  progressive
• were witnessing
  progressive
• had been witnessing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will witness
  simple
• will have witnessed
  perfect
• will be witnessing
  progressive
• will have been witnessing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of witness

First recorded before 950; (noun) Middle English, Old English witnes originally, “knowledge, understanding”; see wit ¹, -ness; (verb) Middle English, derivative of the noun

Explanation

If you're walking down the street and see one car run a red light and plow into another, you are a witness to the accident. You saw it and can tell someone else how the accident happened. The first part of a witness's role is observation. You witness the accident. The second part is telling someone about it — bearing witness. In court, you can be a witness for the defense or prosecution. You can also witness a legal document, like a will, or a wedding conducted by the justice of the peace. Religious people use this word a lot too: being a witness in that sense is being a true believer who tries to convert others.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

witness witnesses witnessed witnessing

Randy Johnson, a developer called as an expert witness in the second lawsuit, advised Carter that many historic buildings on campus are not worth saving.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

The Police Ombudsman said when interviewed by its investigators, the police officer initially assigned to the case said she would have obtained the outstanding witness statements if she had kept ownership of the investigation.

From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026

Federal prosecutors initially filed assault charges against Sosa-Celis and another man, Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna, but dropped them after video evidence and witness statements cast doubt on Castro's account of what happened.

From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026

He has also said they are inviting Altman and his leadership team to Tumbler Ridge to witness how the shooting has devastated the town.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

“Her mind is blown, but she’s probably stopped believing that you’re a secret prince who works as an international spy who’s also in witness protection.”

From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows

Officers found Baby in the car that witnesses had described in a Walgreens parking lot shortly after noon.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

Perhaps those who can look back on terrorism principally as witnesses should be grateful for that distinction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

Lawyers for the Tate brothers said they weren’t a flight risk and don’t pose a threat to any potential witnesses or accusers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

Dozens of witnesses are expected to give evidence during the four-week, judge-only trial.

From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026

Unseen, unheralded; and he might die yet, and nobody would know: but even if no witnesses ever told it, it was still true.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

Some witnessed the collapse of the towers, while others searched through piles of debris for human remains.

From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026

Investigators are asking anyone who saw the car or cyclists before the incident, or who witnessed the crash near the junction of Sole Street and Round Street, to contact them.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

We have witnessed our parents’ gradual decline in cognitive ability and, along with it, the risk of becoming victims of fraud.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026

Aid workers have witnessed such events, and in at least one case filmed them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

But it had happened to him, these people had witnessed it, and they still wanted to risk their own safety, all for some idea.

From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

The ability to make a viewer truly feel as though they are witnessing something that transcends time, something that has always existed, is a very rare and special one.

From Salon ● Sep. 7, 2026

Strangers sang to each other in joyful unison, while others closed their eyes or held their hands on their chest in complete awe of witnessing a veteran artist in her element.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

At times it felt tense witnessing the two sparring in the courtroom, with Rogers accusing her of repeatedly lying.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

Combined with other observations, including its exceptionally high temperature, the measurements led the researchers to conclude that they were witnessing a star being ripped apart and swallowed by a black hole.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

And she’d just finished witnessing all the awful moments of her last six years—all the proof that the Whatnot Corporation knew everything bad about her it possibly could.

From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Related Words

• attend
• mark
• note
• notice
• see
• watch