panopticon

American  

[pan-op-ti-kon] / pænˈɒp tɪˌkɒn /

noun

1. a building, as a prison, hospital, library, or the like, so arranged that all parts of the interior are visible from a single point.

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Etymology

Origin of panopticon

1760–70; pan- + Greek optikón sight, seeing (neuter of optikós; optic )

Example Sentences

She added, “We’re already living in a digital panopticon and seeing the effects of it on our culture, especially when it comes to the anxieties of young people.”

From Slate • Feb. 12, 2026

It was built in 1877 in the form of a panopticon, giving a central guardhouse a clear view to all corners of the "wheel".

From BBC • Jun. 24, 2023

The apartment’s glass windows become a prison panopticon, their visibility stripping the safety from Julia’s intimate domestic space.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2022

Classic views of surveillance envision a prison state – a Big Brother-esque panopticon where a guard in a tower can watch prisoners in cells but the prisoners in the cells cannot see into the tower.

From Salon • Feb. 5, 2022

After another exhilarating day at the panopticon I collapsed onto the couch.

From "A Very Large Expanse of Sea" by Tahereh Mafi