ENGLISH
REFERENCE

eyewitness

n. countable
B2 Upper Intermediate US //ˈaɪˈwɪtnəs// UK //ˈaɪwɪtnəs// eye·wit·ness

n. someone who sees an event happen with their own eyes, especially a crime or an accident. You use this when someone can describe exactly what they saw to the police or in court.

n. a person who has personally seen an event, such as a crime or accident, and can describe it. Often used in legal or journalistic contexts to establish factual evidence.


SIMPLE

The police are looking for an eyewitness to the crash.

CONTEXTUAL

An eyewitness reported seeing a blue car speeding away from the scene immediately after the alarm went off.

COMPLEX

Legal experts often caution that eyewitness testimony can be surprisingly unreliable, as stress and the passage of time can significantly alter a person's memory of a traumatic event.

Origin

From eye + witness.

Usage

Commonly used as a modifier in the compound 'eyewitness testimony' or 'eyewitness account'.

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