Words / B2

WITN-uh-s/ˈwɪtnəs/

A witness is a person who sees an event and can describe it; as a verb, to see it happen: a witness statement; witness an incident. Observer is cooler; spectator is for sport. A witness statement is not a confession. Mix-up: wit is humour. Do not call a rumour-spreader a witness.

Meaning

A person who sees an event and can describe it; also (verb) to see it happen.

Examples

• “A witness statement is not the same as a signed confession in the law unit.”
• “Staff witnessed the collision from the gate, which is the verb sense.”

Good to know

a witness to / statement; witness + event. Verb: witness. Trap: wit. Law, news, and history. Someone who saw it, not a gossip.

Near in meaning

observer

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