viewer

[ vyoo-er ]

noun

1. a person or thing that views.
2. a person who watches television, often a devotee of television or of a particular kind of television program:

   a weekly show aimed at teenage viewers.

3. any of various optical devices to facilitate viewing, view, especially one that is small and boxlike with a magnifying lens, and sometimes a light source, in which a photographic transparency may be viewed.
4. an eyepiece or viewfinder.
5. an official inspector of property, public works, or the like.

viewer

/ ˈvjuːə /

noun

1. a person who views something, esp television
2. any optical device by means of which something is viewed, esp one used for viewing photographic transparencies
3. law a person appointed by a court to inspect and report upon property, etc

Derived Forms

• ˈviewership, noun

Other Words From

• non·viewer noun
• under·viewer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of viewer¹

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; view, -er ¹

Example Sentences

A master of disguise, the Jackal first appears in elaborate — yet, to the viewer, obvious — prosthetics to make him look like a specific janitor in a building he’s planning to breach.

From Los Angeles Times

Allison Tolman plays newly promoted supervising nurse Alex, at the center of things in terms of action and authority, and more or less the stand-in for the viewer.

From Los Angeles Times

There are no relationships for the viewer to focus on, which is what kept “The Office” on the air for nine seasons and makes it a valuable property more than a decade after it left the air.

From Los Angeles Times

There are many emotional moments in the final episodes of “The West Wing,” but given the stakes and realities of this election day, it’s not the end of Bartlet’s presidency or even the death of Leo McGarry — made requisite by Spencer’s own tragic death — that forces the viewer’s throat to close with real grief.

From Los Angeles Times

But Gabriela’s feed shows how, at least to one originally neutral viewer, the site skewered in Trump’s favour - which appears to be in part because of changes to how the site works under Mr Musk’s tenure.

From BBC

Related Words

• observer
• onlooker
• spectator
• watcher