sight
noun
saɪt 
saɪt ability to see
1 [uncountable] the ability to seeSynonym
eyesightto lose your sight (= to become blind)She has very good sight.The disease has affected her sight.He has very little sight in his right eye.act of seeing
2 [uncountable] sight of somebody/something the act of seeing somebody/somethingAfter ten days at sea, we had our first sight of land.I have been known to faint at the sight of blood.The soldiers were given orders to shoot on sight (= as soon as they saw somebody).She caught sight of a car in the distance.The mere sight of him makes me want to scream.how far you can see
3 [uncountable] the area or distance within which somebody can see or something can be seenThere was no one in sight.They stole everything in sight.At last we came in sight of a few houses.A bicycle came into sight on the main road.The end is in sight (= will happen soon).Leave any valuables in your car out of sight.Keep out of sight (= stay where you cannot be seen).She never lets her daughter out of her sight (= always keeps her where she can see her).Get out of my sight! (= Go away!)The boat disappeared from sight.The house was hidden from sight behind some trees.He had placed himself directly in my line of sight.what you can see
4 [countable] a thing that you see or can seeIt's a spectacular sight as the flamingos lift into the air.The museum attempts to recreate the sights and sounds of wartime Britain.He was a sorry sight, soaked to the skin and shivering.The bird is now a rare sight in this country.He became a familiar sight on the streets of Oxford.interesting places
5 sights [plural] the interesting places, especially in a town or city, that are often visited by touristsWe're going to Paris for the weekend to see the sights.It's best if you can get someone local to show you the sights.ridiculous/untidy person
6 a sight [singular] (informal, especially British English) a person or thing that looks ridiculous, untidy, unpleasant, etcShe looks a sight in that hat!on gun/telescope
7 [countable, usually plural] a device that you look through to aim a gun, etc. or to look at something through a telescope, etcHe had the deer in his sights now. (figurative) Even as a young actress, she always had Hollywood firmly in her sights (= as her final goal).Idioms
at first sight
1 when you first begin to consider somethingAt first sight, it may look like a generous offer, but always read the small print.2 when you see somebody/something for the first timeIt was love at first sight (= we fell in love the first time we saw each other).We fell in love with the house at first sight.hate, be sick of, etc. the sight of somebody/something
(informal) to hate, etc. somebody/something very muchI can't stand the sight of him!in the sight of somebody/in somebody's sight
(formal) in somebody's opinionWe are all equal in the sight of God.lose sight of somebody/something
1 to become no longer able to see somebody/somethingThey finally lost sight of land.2 to stop considering something; to forget somethingWe must not lose sight of our original aim.out of sight, out of mind
(saying) used to say somebody will quickly be forgotten when they are no longer with youraise/lower your sights
to expect more/less from a situation
If they can't afford such a big house, they'll just have to lower their sights a little.set your sights on something/on doing something
to decide that you want something and to try very hard to get it
She's set her sights on getting into Harvard.I had set my sights on a career in journalism.a (damn, etc.) sight better, etc.
|a (damn, etc.) sight too good, etc.
(informal) very much better; much too good, etcShe's done a darn sight better than I have.It's worth a damn sight more than I thought.a sight for sore eyes
(informal) a person or thing that you are pleased to see; something that is very pleasant to look atsight unseen
if you buy something sight unseen, you do not have an opportunity to see it before you buy it
Usage note: viewsight scene panoramaThese are all words for a thing that you can see, especially from a particular place.view what you can see from a particular place or position, especially beautiful natural scenery: The cottage had a delightful sea view.sight a thing that you see or can see, especially something that is impressive or unusual: It's a spectacular sight as the flamingos lift into the air.scene a view that you see, especially one with people and/or animals moving about and doing things: It was a delightful rural scene.panorama a view of a wide area of land: The tower offers a breathtaking panorama of Prague.a view/panorama of somethinga beautiful/breathtaking view/sight/scene/panoramaa magnificent/spectacular view/sight/panoramato take in the view/sight/sceneto admire the view/sightUsage note: sightview visionThese are all words for the area or distance that you can see from a particular position.sight the area or distance that you can see from a particular position: He looked up the street, but there was no one in sight. ◇ Leave any valuables in your car out of sight.view (rather formal) the area or distance that you can see from a particular position: The lake soon came into view.vision the area that you can see from a particular position: The couple moved outside her field of vision (= total area you can see from a particular position).sight, view or vision?View is more literary than sight or vision. It is the only word for talking about how well you can see: I didn't have a good sight/vision of the stage. Vision must always be used with a possessive pronoun: my/his/her etc. (field of) vision. It is not used with the prepositions in, into and out of that are very frequent with sight and view: There was nobody in vision. ◇ A tall figure came into vision.in/out of sight/viewin/within sight/view of somethingto come into/disappear from sight/view/somebody's visionto come in sight/view of somebody/somethingto block somebody's view/visionsomebody's line of sight/visionsomebody's field of view/vision