look on
Britishverb
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(adverb) to be a spectator at an event or incident
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Also: look upon. (preposition) to consider or regard
she looked on the whole affair as a joke
he looks on his mother-in-law with disapproval
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Also, look upon . Regard in a certain way, as in I looked on him as a second father , or We looked upon her as a worthy successor . [Early 1600s]
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Be a spectator, watch, as in She rode the horse around the ring as her parents looked on . [Late 1500s]
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Also, look on with . Read from someone's book, paper, or music at the same time, as in I forgot my score; can I look on with you? [Late 1800s]
Other Word Forms
- looker-on noun
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"I should have cut 'boom, boom, boom' because the look on Alan's face was brilliant. No idea what was coming!"
From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026
Donald Trump wants his supporters to look on the bright side.
From Salon • Apr. 12, 2026
Even in her final years, her sister Ronnie recounted, “she would get a look on her face and say, ‘I wish I could find my son.’”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026
Still she was trying to look on the bright side.
From Barron's • Feb. 26, 2026
When I turn to my locker I notice Danny—the red-headed kid from the bus— standing right there staring at me with a weird look on his face.
From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
