observer

[ uhb-zur-ver ]

noun

1. someone or something that observes.
2. a delegate to an assembly or gathering, who is sent to observe and report but not to take part officially in its activities.
3. U.S. Air Force.
   1. a member of an aircrew, other than the pilot, holding an aeronautical rating.
   2. a person who maintains observation in an aircraft during flight.
4. Also called air observer, U.S. Army. a person who serves in an aircraft as a reconnoiterer and directs artillery fire.

Other Words From

• ob·server·ship noun
• inter·ob·server noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of observer¹

First recorded in 1545–55; observe + -er ¹

Example Sentences

As a dispassionate observer of lots of faith institutions, I have felt there are few that match the Church of England for its wide range of views within the same fold.

From BBC

“The location of the beluga whales very close to the submarines and the surface vessels might tell us that they are actually part of a guarding system,” says Thomas Nilsen, from Norwegian online newspaper The Barents Observer.

From BBC

In May, Andrea Grimes wrote at the Texas Observer about the Trump campaign’s gaslighting in defense of Melania Trump’s plagiarism of Michelle Obama in her convention speech.

From Salon

It opens with this epigraph: “I have always been an observer of myself. For years, at the mercy of others. Not anymore.”

From Los Angeles Times

She was the founding editor of Gawker and the former editor in chief of the New York Observer.

From Slate

Related Words

• bystander
• onlooker
• viewer
• watcher
• witness