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Webster 1913 Edition

Observe

Ob-serve′

(ŏb-zẽrv′)
,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Observed
(ŏb-zẽrvd′)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Observing
.]
[L.
observare
,
observatum
;
ob
(see
Ob-
) +
servare
to save, preserve, keep, heed, observe: cf. F.
observer
. See
Serve
.]
1.
To take notice of by appropriate conduct; to conform one’s action or practice to; to keep; to heed; to obey; to comply with;
as, to
observe
rules or commands; to
observe
civility.
Ye shall
observe
the feast of unleavened bread.
Ex. xii. 17.
He wolde no such cursedness
observe
.
Chaucer.
Must I budge? Must I
observe
you?
Shakespeare
With solemn purpose to
observe

Immutably his sovereign
will.
Milton.
3.
To express as what has been noticed; to utter as a remark; to say in a casual or incidental way; to remark.

Ob-serve′

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To take notice; to give attention to what one sees or hears; to attend.
I have barely quoted . . . without
observing
upon it.
Pope.
Syn. – To remark. See
Remark
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Observe

OBSERVE

,
Verb.
T.
obzerv'. [L. observo; ob and servo, to keep or hold. The sense is to hold in view, or to keep the eyes on.]
1.
To see or behold with some attention; to notice; as, to observe a halo round the moon; I observed a singular phenomenon; we observe strangers or their dress. I saw the figure, but observed nothing peculiar in it.
2.
To take notice or cognizance of by the intellect. We observe nice distinctions in arguments, or a peculiar delicacy of thought.
3.
To utter or express, as a remark, opinion or sentiment; to remark. He observed that no man appears great to his domestics.
4.
To keep religiously; to celebrate.
A night to be much observed to the Lord. Ex. 12.
Ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread. Ex. 12.
Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. Gal. 4.
5.
To keep or adhere to in practice; to comply with; to obey; as, to observe the laws of the state; to observe the rules and regulations of a society.
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. Matt. 28.
6.
To practice.
In the days of Enoch, the people observed not circumcision or the sabbath.

OBSERVE

,
Verb.
I.
observ'.
1.
To remark. I have heard the gentleman's arguments, and shall hereafter observe upon them.
2.
To be attentive.

Definition 2024

observe

observe

See also: observé

English

Verb

observe ‎(third-person singular simple present observes, present participle observing, simple past and past participle observed)

  1. (transitive) To notice or view, especially carefully or with attention to detail.
    From this vantage point we can observe the behavior of the animals in their natural habitat.‎
    • 1892, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb
      “One horse?” interjected Holmes. “Yes, only one.” “Did you observe the colour?”
    • 2013 March 1, Frank Fish, George Lauder, “Not Just Going with the Flow”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 2, page 114:
      An extreme version of vorticity is a vortex. The vortex is a spinning, cyclonic mass of fluid, which can be observed in the rotation of water going down a drain, as well as in smoke rings, tornados and hurricanes.
  2. (transitive) To follow or obey the custom, practice, or rules (especially of a religion).
    Please observe all posted speed limits.‎
    • Bible, Exodus
      Ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread.
    • 2011 November 10, Jeremy Wilson, “England Under 21 5 Iceland Under 21 0: match report”, in Telegraph:
      A sell-out crowd of 10,000 then observed perfectly a period of silence before the team revealed their black armbands, complete with stitched-in poppies, for the match. After Fifa’s about-turn, it must have been a frantic few days for the England kit manufacturer. The on-field challenge was altogether more straightforward.
  3. (intransitive) To comment on something; to make an observation.
    The senator observed that the bill would be detrimental to his constituents.‎
    • 1907, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, “chapter VIII”, in The Younger Set (Project Gutenberg; EBook #14852), New York, N.Y.: A. L. Burt Company, published 1 February 2005 (Project Gutenberg version), OCLC 4241346:
      Elbows almost touching they leaned at ease, idly reading the almost obliterated lines engraved there. "I never understood it," she observed, lightly scornful. "What occult meaning has a sun-dial for the spooney? I'm sure I don't want to read riddles in a strange gentleman's optics."

Synonyms

Translations

Derived terms

External links

  • observe in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • observe in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Anagrams

French

Verb

observe

  1. first-person singular present indicative of observer
  2. third-person singular present indicative of observer
  3. first-person singular present subjunctive of observer
  4. third-person singular present subjunctive of observer
  5. second-person singular imperative of observer

Portuguese

Verb

observe

  1. first-person singular present subjunctive of observar
  2. third-person singular present subjunctive of observar
  3. first-person singular imperative of observar
  4. third-person singular imperative of observar

Spanish

Verb

observe

  1. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of observar.
  2. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of observar.
  3. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of observar.
  4. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted?) present subjunctive form of observar.

Etymology

From Middle French observer, from Old French, from Latin observare ‎(“to watch, note, mark, heed, guard, keep, pay attention to, regard, comply with, etc.”), from ob ‎(“before”) + servare ‎(“to keep”), from Proto-Indo-European *serw- ‎(“to guard”). Cognate with Gothic 𐍃𐌰𐍂𐍅𐌰 ‎(sarwa, “weapons, armour”), Old English searu ‎(“device, design, contrivance, art, cunning, craft, artifice, wile, deceit, stratagem, ambush, treachery, plot, trick, snare, ambuscade, cleverness, machine, engine, fabric, armor, equipment, arms”).

Pronunciation

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