observation

1 of 2

noun

ob·​ser·​va·​tion ˌäb-sər-ˈvā-shən How to pronounce observation (audio)
-zər-
1
a
: an act or instance of observing a custom, rule, or law
observation of the dress code
b
: observance sense 3
The characters in her novel are based on close observation of her family.
2
a
: an act of recognizing and noting a fact or occurrence often involving measurement with instruments
weather observations
b
: a record or description so obtained
Scientific observations were sent to the committee.
3
: a judgment on or inference (see inference sense 2) from what one has observed
broadly : remark, statement
an insightful observation
based his observations on his own research
4
obsolete : attentive care : heed
5
: the condition of one that is observed
under observation at the hospital
observational adjective
observationally adverb

observation

2 of 2

adjective

: designed for use in viewing something (such as scenery) or in making observations
an observation tower
the observation platform

Examples of observation in a Sentence

Noun I'm not criticizing that kind of clothing. I'm just making an observation about the style. Her constant observations about the weather bored me. These facts are based on close observation of the birds in the wild. Observations made using the telescope have led to new theories. Some interesting observations came from the study. He recorded his observations in a notebook.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Close observation of the sky showed a few patches of blue here and there. Martin Weil, Washington Post, 3 Mar. 2024 Hayakawa turned to the Songshi, a Chinese historical chronicle of the Song dynasty that includes a section on astronomical observations made between 960 to 1279 C.E. Kim Beil, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Mar. 2024 What Edward did in his paper, though, was to look specifically at what these observations meant for DC plans over the long term. Steven Desmyter, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024 The observations revealed that the impact unleashed a giant debris plume of material into space. Ashley Strickland, CNN, 27 Feb. 2024 While there’s no evidence yet that the dark dimension exists, the scenario does make testable predictions for both cosmological observations and tabletop physics. Steve Nadis, WIRED, 25 Feb. 2024 The balloon was still in the air, under close observation. TIME, 24 Feb. 2024 Based on the current observations, during totality, the comet may be just barely visible to the naked eye, or sky watchers may need binoculars to spot it. Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 23 Feb. 2024 Gilder made these observations last week, at a webinar for the OurCrowd community and the Gilder Private Reserve subscribers. Gil Press, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024
Adjective
Other pre-observation activities and further tests are set to be conducted this week. Julia Musto, Fox News, 17 Mar. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'observation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Adjective

Middle French, from Latin observation-, observatio, from observare

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

1862, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of observation was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near observation

Cite this Entry

“Observation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/observation. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

observation

noun
ob·​ser·​va·​tion
ˌäb-sər-ˈvā-shən,
-zər-
1
: an act or an instance of observing a custom, rule, or law
2
: an act or the power of seeing or fixing the mind upon something
3
: an act of gathering information (as for scientific studies) by noting facts or occurrences
weather observations
4
: an opinion formed or expressed after observing
5
: the state of being observed
was in the hospital for observation
observational
-shnəl
-shən-ᵊl
adjective

Medical Definition

observation

noun
ob·​ser·​va·​tion ˌäb-sər-ˈvā-shən, -zər- How to pronounce observation (audio)
1
: the noting of a fact or occurrence (as in nature) often involving the measurement of some magnitude with suitable instruments
temperature observations
also : a record so obtained
2
: close watch or examination (as to monitor or diagnose a condition)
postoperative observation
psychiatric observation

More from Merriam-Webster on observation

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