Viewer

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈvjuːə/

Definitions

1. A person who watches television, films, or other visual content
2. An individual who consumes visual media, such as films or broadcasts, while engaging with and interpreting the content they observe
3. An individual who observes programs, movies, or broadcasts ; a tool or application used to display images or multimedia content

Etymology: The word "viewer" is about as transparent as English gets: "view" with the agent suffix "-er", meaning one who views. Its earliest English form appeared in Middle English as "vewer," built the same way from the verb "vewen," meaning to look at or see. The spelling change from "vewer" to "viewer" came later, as English spelling shifted and the "iew" form took hold. The modern sense of a screen-watching audience member or a software tool for displaying images is a recent extension of that old meaning. Someone who looks at something carefully, such as an inspector or a spectator, gradually became joined by a device or program that does the looking or displaying on your behalf.

Synonyms: spectator, observer, witness

Antonyms: participant