witness

[ wit-nis ]

/ ˈwɪt nɪs /

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See synonyms for: witness / witnessed / witnesses / witnessing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to see, hear, or know by personal presence and perception: to witness an accident.

to be present at (an occurrence) as a formal witness, spectator, bystander, etc.: She witnessed our wedding.

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

to attest by one's signature: He witnessed her will.

verb (used without object)

to bear witness; testify; give or afford evidence.

noun

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

a person or thing that affords evidence.

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

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

testimony or evidence: to bear witness to her suffering.

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

OTHER WORDS FOR witness

1 perceive, watch, mark, notice, note.

10 proof, confirmation, substantiation.

See synonyms for witness on Thesaurus.com

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ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

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True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

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Origin of witness

First recorded before 950; (noun) Middle English, Old English witnes originally, “knowledge, understanding”; see wit¹, -ness; (verb) Middle English, derivative of the noun

synonym study for witness

1. See observe.

OTHER WORDS FROM witness

wit·ness·a·ble, adjectivewit·ness·er, nounpre·wit·ness, noun, verb (used with object)self-wit·ness, noun

self-wit·nessed, adjectivewell-wit·nessed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use witness in a sentence

In that case, a lower court blocked South Carolina’s witness requirement on the theory that it imposed too high a burden on voters who may be reluctant to interact with potential witnesses during a pandemic.
If the Supreme Court decides the election, it will likely all come down to Brett Kavanaugh|Ian Millhiser|October 30, 2020|Vox
According to a witness, Lopez-Sales was riding his bike on the sidewalk along East Capitol Street and then entered the roadway into the travel lanes seconds before the collision, the statement said.
Bicyclist fatally struck in Prince George’s as D.C. officer sought murder suspect|Justin Wm. Moyer|October 29, 2020|Washington Post
In addition, the General Assembly’s bills also would remove the requirement for a witness to certify a ballot signature.
Virginia voting guide: What to know about early voting, mail-in ballots|Antonio Olivo, Patricia Sullivan|October 28, 2020|Washington Post
It meant some ballots mailed out hours or a day earlier without a witness signature counted, while later ones didn’t.
The Supreme Court is giving advocates for voting rights heartburn|Amber Phillips|October 23, 2020|Washington Post

We’ll have to see how they fare in depositions and on the witness stand, but it’s another way the new case falls short.
The Google antitrust case is nothing compared to the 1999 Microsoft case|Aaron Pressman|October 21, 2020|Fortune
White people of this generation are witnessing what we have always lived, survived.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Protesting|Rawiya Kameir, Judnick Mayard|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It was like witnessing the last two weeks of the life of a blind and toothless dog you knew the vet was just itching to destroy.
Dems, It’s Time to Dump Dixie|Michael Tomasky|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
More than a few joined after witnessing 9/11, and some had even experienced it firsthand in Manhattan or DC.
Bergdahl’s Bitter Homecoming: The Psychological Cost of War|Jean Kim|July 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The violence we are witnessing today is no greater in its bloody intensity than it has been throughout our history.
You, Too, Could Be a Homicidal Zealot|Joel Gold|July 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Watching the World Cup is not just about witnessing a few over-compensated superstars pulling off impressive feats.
Why the Yanks Don’t Get Futbol|Nico Hines|June 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A few days before my departure from Singapore, I had an opportunity of witnessing the burial of a Chinese in easy circumstances.
A Woman's Journey Round the World|Ida Pfeiffer
After witnessing the farewell at Fontainebleu, he came back to his mother in July, 1814, being then hardly nineteen.
Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z|Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois Christophe
Calendau, after witnessing the lascivious dances, challenges the Count to mortal combat.
Frdric Mistral|Charles Alfred Downer
Mr Bellingham looked graver than he had done while witnessing Ruth's passionate emotion in her mother's room.
Ruth|Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell
Some idlers of the town were the only witnesses—and little did they guess the extent of the tragedy they were witnessing.
Mistress Wilding|Rafael Sabatini

British Dictionary definitions for witness

witness

/ (ˈwɪtnɪs) /

noun

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

a person or thing giving or serving as evidence

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

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

bear witness

to give written or oral testimony
to be evidence or proof ofRelated adjective: testimonial

verb

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

to give or serve as evidence (of)

(tr) to be the scene or setting ofthis field has witnessed a battle

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

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

Derived forms of witness

witnessable, adjectivewitnesser, noun

Word Origin for witness

Old English witnes (meaning both testimony and witness), from witan to know, wit ² + -ness; related to Old Norse vitni

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

witness

OTHER WORDS FOR witness

Origin of witness

synonym study for witness

OTHER WORDS FROM witness

Words related to witness

How to use witness in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for witness

Derived forms of witness

Word Origin for witness