voyeur

noun

voy·​eur vwä-ˈyər  vȯi-ˈər 

plural voyeurs

1

a

: someone who obtains sexual gratification from observing unsuspecting individuals who are partly undressed, naked, or engaged in sexual acts

broadly : someone who habitually seeks sexual stimulation by visual means

b

: a person who commits the crime of voyeurism

2

: a prying observer who is usually seeking the sordid or the scandalous

Did you know?

What is a voyeur?

Voyeur is a fairly recent addition to English; our earliest written evidence for the word dates from the beginning of the 20th century. It comes directly from a French noun meaning, literally, “one who sees.”

Initially, voyeur referred to someone who derived sexual pleasure from watching others undress or engage in intimate acts; it was synonymous with Peeping Tom. By the middle of the 20th century, its meaning had broadened to "an unduly prying observer," particularly one interested in squalid or shocking details:

[A] good biographer is always in some sense a voyeur.–Times Literary Supplement, November 5, 1971

Is a press that pries into a presidential aspirant’s personal habits pandering to voyeurs or enlightening rightfully curious voters? –Saturday Review, February 16, 1980

Examples of voyeur in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The ability to be a voyeur into your holiday season. —Margaux Anbouba, Vogue, 15 Dec. 2024

Online, hundreds of thousands of people have become voyeurs in her saga. —Angela Watercutter, WIRED, 4 Oct. 2024

The police set up surveillance around their home to catch the voyeur, but the family starts to crumble as secrets unravel under the scrutiny. —Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 4 Sep. 2024

Airports, which are not most people’s favorite places, appeal to her as a voyeur. —Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

French, literally, one who sees, from Middle French, from voir to see, from Latin vidēre — more at wit

First Known Use

1900, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

voyeur

noun

voy·​eur vwä-ˈyər  vȯi-ˈər 

: one obtaining sexual gratification from observing unsuspecting individuals who are partly undressed, naked, or engaged in sexual acts

broadly : one who habitually seeks sexual stimulation by visual means