TOP

Definition of sight noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

sight

noun
 
 
/saɪt/
 
/saɪt/
Idioms
jump to other results

    ability to see

  1.  
     [uncountable] the ability to see synonym eyesight
    • to lose your sight (= to become blind)
    • She has very good sight.
    • The disease has affected her sight.
    • He has very little sight in his right eye.
    • It's important that you have regular sight tests.
    Extra Examples
    • He's lost the sight of one eye.
    • His sight returned by degrees.
    • I think my sight is beginning to go.
    • The surgeons battled to save her sight.
    • This disease is the main cause of sight loss among those aged 50 and over.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverb + sight
    • have
    • lose
    • regain
    • …
    sight + verb
    • deteriorate
    • fail
    • go
    • …
    sight + noun
    • test
    • defects
    • problems
    • …
    phrases
    • the/​your sense of sight
    See full entry
    2.

    act of seeing

  2.  
     [uncountable] the act of seeing somebody/something
    • sight of somebody/something She kept sight of him in her mirror.
    • She caught sight of a car in the distance.
    • After ten days at sea, we had our first sight of land.
    • The mere sight of him makes me want to scream.
    • sight of somebody/something doing something The sight of him hobbling off so early in the match depressed everyone.
    • at the sight He laughed quietly to himself at the sight.
    • at the sight of somebody/something I have been known to faint at the sight of blood.
    • on sight The soldiers were given orders to shoot on sight (= as soon as they saw somebody).
    Extra Examples
    • Her knees went weak at the sight of him.
    • Thankfully, we were spared the sight of his naked body.
    • The mere sight of her sitting there made his heart beat faster.
    • I witnessed the awful sight of children drinking dirty water from puddles.
    • We will soon get our first sight of the Statue of Liberty.
    • I know her by sight (= recognize but do not know her).
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverb + sight
    • catch
    • get
    • have
    • …
    sight + noun
    • gag
    preposition
    • at the sight (of)
    • on sight
    phrases
    • at first sight
    • cannot bear the sight of something
    • cannot stand the sight of something
    • …
    See full entry
    3.

    how far you can see

  3.  
     [uncountable] the area or distance within which somebody can see or something can be seen
    • in sight There was no one in sight.
    • They stole everything in sight.
    • The end is in sight (= will happen soon).
    • The goats ate everything in sight.
    • in sight of somebody/something At last we came in sight of a few houses.
    • A bicycle came into sight on the main road.
    • within sight They marched on and by the following afternoon the enemy was within sight.
    • within sight of somebody/something He sprinted ahead as they came within sight of the finishing line.
    • out of sight Leave any valuables in your car out of sight.
    • Keep out of sight (= stay where you cannot be seen).
    • out of somebody's sight She never lets her daughter out of her sight (= always keeps her where she can see her).
    • Get out of my sight! (= Go away!)
    • The boat disappeared from sight.
    • The house was hidden from sight behind some trees.
    see also line of sight, short sight
    Synonyms sightsightview ▪ visionThese are all words for the area or distance that you can see from a particular position.sight the area or distance that you can see from a particular position:
    • He looked up the street, but there was no one in sight.
    • Leave any valuables in your car out of sight.
    view (rather formal) the area or distance that you can see from a particular position:
    • The lake soon came into view.
    vision the area that you can see from a particular position:
    • The couple moved outside her field of vision (= total area you can see from a particular position).
     sight, view or vision?View is more literary than sight or vision. It is the only word for talking about how well you can see: I didn’t have a good sight/​vision of the stage. Vision must always be used with a possessive pronoun: my/​his/​her, etc. (field of) vision . It is not used with the prepositions in, into and out of that are very frequent with sight and view: There was nobody in vision. • A tall figure came into vision. Patterns
    • in/​out of sight/​view
    • in/​within sight/​view of something
    • to come into/​disappear from sight/​view/​somebody’s vision
    • to come in sight/​view of somebody/​something
    • to block somebody’s view/​vision
    • somebody’s line of sight/​vision
    • somebody’s field of view/​vision
    • He won't let the children leave his sight.
    • Her father was nowhere in sight.
    • The cricket ground was situated within sight of both village pubs.
    • They waited until the enemy was in plain sight.
    • He strode by, in full sight of the guards.
    • He didn't shoot until he had a clear sight of the goal.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverb + sight
    • come into
    • disappear from
    • vanish from
    • …
    preposition
    • in sight
    • out of sight
    • within sight of
    • …
    phrases
    • in full sight of somebody
    • in plain sight
    • be nowhere in sight
    • …
    See full entry
    4.

    what you can see

  4.  
     [countable] a thing that you see or can see
    • Roadside stalls are a common sight in the city.
    • It's a spectacular sight as the flamingos lift into the air.
    • The museum attempts to recreate the sights and sounds of wartime Britain.
    • He was a sorry sight, soaked to the skin and shivering.
    • The bird is now a rare sight in this country.
    • He became a familiar sight on the streets of Oxford.
    • The gardens were a beautiful sight to behold in the twilight.
    Homophones cite | sight | sitecite   sight   site
     
    /saɪt/
     
    /saɪt/
    • cite verb
      • They were unable to cite any studies to back up their claims.
    • sight noun
      • She would never forget the sight of Machu Picchu appearing out of the mist.
    • sight verb
      • He was the first European to sight the island later named Hispaniola.
    • site noun
      • Follow this link to reach the official site.
    • site verb
      • The company plans to site its new headquarters there.
    Synonyms viewviewsight ▪ scene ▪ panoramaThese are all words for a thing that you can see, especially from a particular place.view what you can see from a particular place or position, especially beautiful natural scenery:
    • The cottage had a delightful sea view.
    sight a thing that you see or can see, especially something that is impressive or unusual:
    • It’s a spectacular sight as the flamingos lift into the air.
    scene a view that you see, especially one with people and/​or animals moving about and doing things:
    • It was a delightful rural scene.
    panorama a view of a wide area of land:
    • The tower offers a breathtaking panorama of Prague.
    Patterns
    • a view/​panorama of something
    • a beautiful/​breathtaking view/​sight/​scene/​panorama
    • a magnificent/​spectacular view/​sight/​panorama
    • to take in the view/​sight/​scene
    • to admire the view/​sight
    Extra Examples
    • An appalling sight greeted her.
    • Dan's face was a welcome sight.
    • I'm not a pretty sight when I get out of bed in the morning.
    • The military parade was quite a sight.
    • This is a sight not often seen on concert stages in this country.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • common
    • familiar
    • regular
    • …
    verb + sight
    • behold
    • see
    • witness
    • …
    sight + verb
    • greet
    phrases
    • be quite a sight
    • be spared the sight of something
    • not a pretty sight
    • …
    See full entry
    5.

    interesting places

  5.  
    sights
    [plural] the interesting places, especially in a town or city, that are often visited by tourists
    • We're going to Paris for the weekend to see the sights.
    • The next day I did the sights of the city.
    • It's best if you can get someone local to show you the sights.
    Topics Holidaysb1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • famous
    • historic
    verb + sights
    • see
    • take in
    • visit
    • …
    See full entry
    6.

    silly/untidy person

  6. a sight
     [singular] (informal, especially British English) a person or thing that looks silly, untidy, unpleasant, etc.
    • She looks a sight in that hat!
    7.

    on gun/telescope

  7. [countable, usually plural] a device that you look through to aim a gun, etc. or to look at something through a telescope, etc.
    • He had the deer in his sights now.
    • to align the sights on the target
    • (figurative) Even as a young actress, she always had Hollywood firmly in her sights (= as her final goal).
    Extra Examples
    • Rossi has the defending champion in her sights in tomorrow's race.
    • She turned her sights on (= decided to examine) Florida's adoption laws.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverb + sights
    • have somebody/​something in
    • have somebody/​something within
    • fix
    • …
    phrases
    • have your sights set on something
    • set your sights on something
    • set your sights high
    • …
    See full entry
    8.  see also second sight
    Word OriginOld English (ge)sihth ‘something seen’, of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch zicht and German Gesicht ‘sight, face, appearance’.
Idioms
at first sight
  1. when you first begin to consider something
    • At first sight, it may look like a generous offer, but always read the small print.
  2. when you see somebody/something for the first time
    • It was love at first sight (= we fell in love the first time we saw each other).
    • We fell in love with the house at first sight.
    • He looked at first sight like a tourist.
hate, be sick of, etc. the sight of somebody/something
  1. (informal) to hate, etc. somebody/something very much
    • I can't stand the sight of him!
    • We've shared an office for too long and we're sick of the sight of each other.
    Topics Preferences and decisionsc2
heave into sight/view
  1. (formal) (especially of ships) to appear, especially when moving gradually closer from a long way off
    • A ship hove into sight.
    • Like a galleon in full sail, Cara hove into view.
    Hove is usually used for the past tense and past participle in this idiom.Topics Transport by waterc2
in the sight of somebody/in somebody’s sight
  1. (formal) in somebody’s opinion
    • We are all equal in the sight of God.
    Topics Opinion and argumentc2
know somebody by sight
  1. to recognize somebody without knowing them well
lose sight of somebody/something
  1. to become no longer able to see somebody/something
    • They finally lost sight of land.
  2. to stop considering something; to forget something
    • We must not lose sight of our original aim.
not a pretty sight
  1. (humorous) not pleasant to look at
    • You should have seen him in his swimming trunks—not a pretty sight!
nowhere to be found/seen | nowhere in sight
  1. impossible for anyone to find or see
    • I wanted to talk to him but he was nowhere to be found.
    • The children were nowhere to be seen.
    • A peace settlement is nowhere in sight (= is not likely in the near future).
out of sight, out of mind
  1. (saying) used to say somebody will quickly be forgotten when they are no longer with you
raise/lower your sights
  1. to expect more/less from a situation
    • If they can’t afford such a big house, they’ll just have to lower their sights a little.
    • After failing to get into university, he lowered his sights and got a job in a shop.
set your sights on something/on doing something
  1. to decide that you want something and to try very hard to get it
    • She's set her sights on getting into Harvard.
    • I had set my sights on a career in journalism.
    • He says he wants to win the trophy, but I think he's setting his sights too high.
    • She has her sights set on becoming a writer.
a (damn, etc.) sight better, etc. | a (damn, etc.) sight too good, etc.
  1. (informal) very much better; much too good, etc.
    • She's done a darn sight better than I have.
    • It's worth a damn sight more than I thought.
a sight for sore eyes
  1. (informal) a person or thing that you are pleased to see; something that is very pleasant to look at
sight unseen
  1. if you buy something sight unseen, you do not have an opportunity to see it before you buy it
    • I bought it, sight unseen.
See sight in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee sight in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
Check pronunciation: sight

Nearby words

perspective
noun
 
 
From the Word list
Oxford 3000
B2
Oxford Learner's Dictionaries Word of the Day