eye

The word “eye” means the organ of sight in humans and animals. In plain terms, the organ used for seeing, or a skilled sense of judgement — plus a verb meaning to look at closely.

“Eye” is pronounced EYE (/ˈaɪ̯/ in IPA).

Here is “eye” used in a sentence: “She has striking green eyes.”

Words with a similar meaning to “eye” include eyeball, glim, globe, lurk, mince pie and ogle.

Depending on how it is used, “eye” can be a noun and a verb.

The word “eye” comes from Latin. From Old English ēage, tracing back to Proto-Indo-European roots meaning "to see" — related to "ogle" and, further back, to Latin oculus.

“Eye” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.

“Eye” has 4 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: the organ of sight in humans and animals.

Key parts include the cornea and lens, which focus light; the iris, the coloured ring that controls how much light enters; the pupil, the dark opening at its centre; and the retina at the back, which turns light into signals sent along the optic nerve to the brain.

Light enters through the cornea and pupil, and the lens focuses it onto the retina at the back of the eye. Light-sensitive cells there convert the image into electrical signals, which travel along the optic nerve to the brain. The brain then interprets these signals as the picture you see.

Figuratively, eye often means judgement, attention, or taste. An eye for detail means a talent for noticing small things; keep an eye on means to watch; see eye to eye means to agree. These phrases build on the eye's role in seeing and paying attention.

No. While many animals share the basic camera-like eye, designs vary widely. Insects have compound eyes made of many tiny units, giving a mosaic view. Some creatures see colours humans cannot, others detect only light and shade, and a few deep-sea and cave animals have almost no eyes at all.