Get to know Onlooker better with 10+ real example sentences, the meaning and synonyms like spectator or witness.
Onlooker meaning
A spectator; someone looks on or watches, without becoming involved or participating.
Using Onlooker
- The main meaning on this page is: A spectator; someone looks on or watches, without becoming involved or participating.
- Useful related words include: looker-on, spectator, witness, viewer.
- In the example corpus, onlooker often appears in combinations such as: an onlooker, the onlooker, onlooker told.
Context around Onlooker
- Average sentence length in these examples: 22.7 words
- Position in the sentence: 15 start, 2 middle, 3 end
- Sentence types: 20 statements, 0 questions, 0 exclamations
Corpus analysis for Onlooker
- In this selection, "onlooker" usually appears near the start of the sentence. The average example has 22.7 words, and this corpus slice is mostly made up of statements.
- Around the word, shocked, pragmatic, concerned, told, says and messaged stand out and add context to how "onlooker" is used.
- Recognizable usage signals include a concerned onlooker that i and a shocked onlooker filmed the. That gives this page its own corpus information beyond isolated example sentences.
- By corpus frequency, "onlooker" sits close to words such as abnormality, absenteeism and absorbent, which helps place it inside the broader word index.
Example types with onlooker
The same corpus examples are grouped by length and sentence type, making it easier to see the contexts in which the word appears:
One shocked onlooker told they witnessed the emergency response on Saturday. (11 words)
Onlooker Gemma Fletcher said she heard 'a bang, some clattering and screeching'. (12 words)
An onlooker says: 'Steve looked pretty drunk but Sarah didn't seem to mind. (14 words)
This is a group pushing against the glass-half-full brigade, and at The Valley they put in a performance of attacking and defensive football which would have been difficult to criticise for even the most pragmatic onlooker. (38 words)
He told the witness that she was just a bit dizzy, but when he got her to her feet and led her off the train at Four Lane Ends the onlooker messaged her boyfriend who called police. (37 words)
Cardi B clashed with a New York apartment resident in footage captured by an onlooker around 1 a.m. ET on July 29. A video of the incident surfaced via the on Monday (August 5). (35 words)
Example sentences (20)
An onlooker and fellow lifesaver, David Price, saw him suddenly dive into the pool and pull a young girl to the surface.
An onlooker has been left in shock after witnessing a woman she had spoken to minutes before being dragged out by a strong wave to her death.
An onlooker says: 'Steve looked pretty drunk but Sarah didn't seem to mind.
He told the witness that she was just a bit dizzy, but when he got her to her feet and led her off the train at Four Lane Ends the onlooker messaged her boyfriend who called police.
However an onlooker last night was convinced the pair were out on the town enjoying a romantic date.
One onlooker said: “When I saw him he was on the floor on his side.
One onlooker says of the pair: 'They were sitting together, laughing together and looking cosy.
One shocked onlooker told they witnessed the emergency response on Saturday.
Onlooker Gemma Fletcher said she heard 'a bang, some clattering and screeching'.
The onlooker added: “He ripped it off and ran across the road and ran away.
The Top Gear host looked like he was on a date, said an onlooker.
This is a group pushing against the glass-half-full brigade, and at The Valley they put in a performance of attacking and defensive football which would have been difficult to criticise for even the most pragmatic onlooker.
To an onlooker, the throngs of people spilling off platforms and out of car parks during rush hour on a weekday may all appear to have a similar story.
After a sensational season in Holland – where Erik ten Hag was an onlooker as Ajax boss – Gakpo was tipped to join the Dutchman at Old Trafford.
An onlooker told Daily Mail Australia at the time that Danika looked smitten with the footballer and was practically sitting on his lap while gazing wistfully into his eyes.
An onlooker told The Sun: 'Hugo and Charlotte could not keep their hands off each other all night.
Another onlooker said it was an "utterly extraordinary sight" and "it took about an hour-and-a-half for the bikes to pass us from the first of the group to the last".
A shocked onlooker filmed the incredible scene, as the helpless animal was rescued by a brave paddleboarder.
Cardi B clashed with a New York apartment resident in footage captured by an onlooker around 1 a.m. ET on July 29. A video of the incident surfaced via the on Monday (August 5).
He is so convincing as a concerned onlooker that I started to wonder if a different character was going to enter the narrative to take up the antagonist role.
Common combinations with onlooker
These word pairs occur most frequently in English texts:
- an onlooker 34×
- the onlooker 7×
- onlooker told 7×
- onlooker said 6×
- one onlooker 5×
- onlooker the 3×
- onlooker has 2×
- onlooker says 2×
- shocked onlooker 2×
- onlooker as 2×