Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Witness

Wit′ness

,
Noun.
[AS.
witness
, ge
witnes
, from
witan
to know. √133. See
Wit
,
Verb.
I.
]
1.
Attestation of a fact or an event; testimony.
May we with . . . the
witness
of a good conscience, pursue him with any further revenge?
Shakespeare
If I bear
witness
of myself, my
witness
is not true.
John v. 31.
2.
That which furnishes evidence or proof.
Laban said to Jacob, . . . This heap be
witness
, and this pillar be
witness
.
Gen. xxxi. 51, 52.
3.
One who is cognizant; a person who beholds, or otherwise has personal knowledge of, anything;
as, an eye
witness
; an ear
witness
.
“Thyself art witness I am betrothed.”
Shak.
Upon my looking round, I was
witness
to appearances which filled me with melancholy and regret.
R. Hall.
4.
(Law)
(a)
One who testifies in a cause, or gives evidence before a judicial tribunal;
as, the
witness
in court agreed in all essential facts
.
(b)
One who sees the execution of an instrument, and subscribes it for the purpose of confirming its authenticity by his testimony; one who witnesses a will, a deed, a marriage, or the like.
Privileged witnesses
.
(Law)
See under
Privileged
.
–
With a witness
,
effectually; to a great degree; with great force, so as to leave some mark as a testimony.
[Colloq.]

This, I confess, is haste
with a witness
.
South.

Wit′ness

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Witnessed
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Witnessing
.]
1.
To see or know by personal presence; to have direct cognizance of.
This is but a faint sketch of the incalculable calamities and horrors we must expect, should we ever
witness
the triumphs of modern infidelity.
R. Hall.
General Washington did not live to
witness
the restoration of peace.
Marshall.
2.
To give testimony to; to testify to; to attest.
Behold how many things they
witness
against thee.
Mark xv. 4.
3.
(Law)
To see the execution of, as an instrument, and subscribe it for the purpose of establishing its authenticity;
as, to
witness
a bond or a deed
.

Wit′ness

,
Verb.
I.
To bear testimony; to give evidence; to testify.
Chaucer.
The men of Belial
witnessed
against him.
1 Kings xxi. 13.
The
witnessing
of the truth was then so generally attended with this event [martyrdom] that martyrdom now signifies not only to
witness
, but to
witness
to death.
South.

Webster 1828 Edition

Witness

WITNESS

,
Noun.
1.
Testimony; attestation of a fact or event.
If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true. John 5.
2.
That which furnishes evidence or proof.
Laban said, this heap is a witness between me and thee this day. Genesis 31.
3.
A person who knows or sees any thing; one personally present; as, he was witness; he was an eye-witness. 1 Peter 5.
4.
One who sees the execution of an instrument, and subscribes it for the purpose of confirming its authenticity b his testimony.
5.
One who gives testimony; as, the witnesses in court agreed in all essential facts.
With a witness, effectually; to a great degree; with great force, so as to leave some mark as a testimony behind. He struck with a witness. [Not elegant.]

WITNESS

,
Verb.
T.
1.
To see or know by personal presence. I witnessed the ceremonies in New York, with which the ratification of the constitution was celebrated, in 1788.
2.
To attest; to give testimony to; to testify to something.
Behold, how many things they witness against thee. Mark 15.
3.
To see the execution of an instrument, and subscribe it for the purpose of establishing its authenticity; as, to witness a bond or a deed.

WITNESS

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To bear testimony.
The men of Belial witnessed against him, even against Naboth. 1 Kings 21.
2.
To give evidence.
The shew of their countenance doth witness against them. Isaiah 3.

Definition 2024

Witness

Witness

See also: witness

English

Noun

Witness ‎(plural Witnesses)

  1. Jehovah's Witness

witness

witness

See also: Witness

English

Noun

witness ‎(countable and uncountable, plural witnesses)

  1. (uncountable) Attestation of a fact or event; testimony.
    She can bear witness, since she was there at the time.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Shakespeare
      May we with […] the witness of a good conscience, pursue him with any further revenge?
    • 1959, Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of holy scripture, volume 6:
      We have as much witness from heaven as we need.
    • 1999, Nettie Becker, ‎Paul Becker, A Comprehensive Guide for Caregivers in Day-care Settings:
      On another corner, stands an old style tenement building, whose dirty grey facade bears as much witness to the volume of exhaust fumes from millions of passing cars as it does to the age of the dwelling.
    • 2002, Charles E. Scott, The Lives of Things, page 125:
      Nor do the formation and articulation of such knowledge themselves bear much witness to Geist.
    • 2008, Jeremiah Burroughs, ‎C. Matthew McMahon, ‎Therese B. McMahon, The Excellency of Holy Courage in Evil Times, page 100:
      Fleeing is giving witness, and those that plead against it are loath to give so much witness
    • 2014, James Tarter, God's Word to the United States: The Book of Obadiah:
      Ob. 16 can show that every nation will get at least this much witness
  2. (countable) One who sees or has personal knowledge of something.
    As a witness to the event, I can confirm that he really said that.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Shakespeare
      Thyself art witness I am betrothed.
    • (Can we date this quote?) R. Hall
      Upon my looking round, I was witness to appearances which filled me with melancholy and regret.
  3. (countable) Someone called to give evidence in a court.
    The witness for the prosecution did not seem very credible.
  4. (countable) Something that serves as evidence; a sign.
    • Bible, Genesis xxxi. 51, 52
      Laban said to Jacob, […] This heap be witness, and this pillar be witness.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

witness ‎(third-person singular simple present witnesses, present participle witnessing, simple past and past participle witnessed)

  1. (transitive) To furnish proof of, to show.
    This certificate witnesses his presence on that day.
    • 1667: round he throws his baleful eyes / That witness'd huge affliction and dismay — John Milton, Paradise Lost, Book 1 ll. 56-7
  2. (transitive) To take as evidence.
    • 1993, Vicki M. Pino, “Viewpoints from our Readers after "Aprongate": Lighten up”, in Atlanta Journal Constitution:
      Depression often goes undetected until it is too late . Witness the recent White House suicide.
  3. (transitive) To see or gain knowledge of through experience.
    He witnessed the accident.
    • R. Hall
      This is but a faint sketch of the incalculable calamities and horrors we must expect, should we ever witness the triumphs of modern infidelity.
    • Marshall
      General Washington did not live to witness the restoration of peace.
  4. (intransitive, construed with to or for) To present personal religious testimony; to preach at (someone) or on behalf of.
    • 1998, "Niebuhr, Reinhold", Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, volume 6‎, page 842
      Instead, Niebuhr's God was the God witnessed to in the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament, the Bible of the Christian world.
  5. To see the execution of (a legal instrument), and subscribe it for the purpose of establishing its authenticity.
    to witness a bond or a deed

Synonyms

Translations

Anagrams

Etymology

From Middle English witnesse, from Old English witnes ‎(“knowledge, witness, testimony, a witness”), equivalent to wit +‎ -ness. Cognate with Middle Dutch wetenisse ‎(“witness, testimony”), Old High German gewiznessi ‎(“testimony”).

Pronunciation

  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /ˈwɪt.nəs/, /ˈwɪt.nɪs/

Similar Results