on the lookout

Idioms and Phrases

Also, on the watch . Vigilant, alert, as in Be on the lookout for the twins—they're somewhere on this playground , or He was on the watch for her arrival . Both phrases were originally used with upon . Upon the lookout was originally nautical usage, meaning “on duty being watchful” (as for another ship, rocks, or land); it appeared in the mid-1700s, and on replaced upon about a century later. Upon the watch was first recorded in Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (1719), and on the watch in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility (1797).

Example Sentences

But if you are strolling that one lovely thoroughfare, be on the lookout for Kiernan Shipka, who likes to grab her coffee at Go Get Em Tiger, or Emma Roberts, who stocks up on periodicals at the newstand there.

From Los Angeles Times

I’ll be on the lookout for whatever else I’ve been missing.

From Los Angeles Times

We’ll also be on the lookout for New York House race results from this point on, since the races that will likely decide control of the House are mostly playing out in New York and California.

From Slate

Barnett said his office is also on the lookout for voter fraud.

From Salon

At one point Crooks ran from officers who were on the lookout for him.

From BBC

Related Words

• active
• bright
• careful
• intelligent
• observant
• perceptive
• sharp
• vigilant
• wary
• watchful
• wired
• wise