Idioms for watch

    on the watch, vigilant; alert: The hunter was on the watch for game.
    watch oneself,
    1. to be cautious.
    2. to practice discretion or self-restraint.

Origin of watch

before 900; 1580–90 for def 15; (v.) Middle English wacchen, Old English wæccan, doublet of wacian to be awake (see wake1); (noun) Middle English wacche, Old English wæcce, derivative of wæccan

SYNONYMS FOR watch

1 Watch, look, see imply being aware of things around one by perceiving them through the eyes. To watch is to be a spectator, to look on or observe, or to fix the attention upon during passage of time: to watch while a procession passes. To look is to direct the gaze with the intention of seeing, to use the eyesight with attention: to look for violets in the spring; to look at articles displayed for sale. To see is to perceive with the eyes, to obtain a visual impression, with or without fixing the attention: animals able to see in the dark.
9 await.
10 protect.
11 inspection, attention.
12 vigil.

OTHER WORDS FROM watch

un·watched, adjective un·watch·ing, adjective well-watched, adjective

Example sentences from the Web for watching

British Dictionary definitions for watching

watch
/ (wɒtʃ) /

verb

noun

See also watch out

Word Origin for watch

Old English wæccan (vb), wæcce (n); related to wake 1

Idioms and Phrases with watching

watch