[eye] n [ME, fr. OE eage; akin to OHG ouga eye, L oculus, Gk ops eye, face, Skt aksi eye] (bef. 12c) 1 a: an organ of sight; esp: a nearly spherical hollow organ that is lined with a sensitive retina, is lodged in a bony orbit in the skull, is the vertebrate organ of sight, and is normally paired b: all the visible structures within and surrounding the orbit and including eyelids, eyelashes, and eyebrows c (1): the faculty of seeing with eyes (2): the faculty of intellectual or aesthetic perception or appreciation "an ~ for beauty" d: look, glance "cast an eager ~" e (1): an attentive look "kept an ~ on his valuables" (2): attention, notice "caught his ~" (3): close observation: scrutiny "works under the ~ of her boss" "in the public ~" f: point of view, judgment "beauty is in the ~ of the beholder"--often used in pl. "an offender in the ~s of the law" g: view
5. "with an ~ to the future"
2: something having an appearance suggestive of an eye: as a: the hole through the head of a needle b: a usu. circular marking (as on a peacock's tail) c: loop; esp: a loop or catch to receive a hook d: an undeveloped bud (as on a potato) e: an area like a hole in the center of a tropical cyclone marked by only light winds or complete calm with no precipitation f: the center of a flower esp. when differently colored or marked; specif: the disk of a composite g (1): a triangular piece of beef cut from between the top and bottom of a round (2): the chief muscle of a chop (3): a compact mass of muscular tissue usu. embedded in fat in a rib or loin cut of meat h: a device (as a photoelectric cell) that functions in a manner analogous to human vision
3: something central: center "the ~ of the problem --Norman Mailer"
4: the direction from which the wind is blowing -- eye.less adj -- eye.like adj -- an eye for an eye : retribution in kind -- my eye --used to express mild disagreement or sometimes surprise "a diamond, my eye] That's glass"
[2]eye vb eyed ; eye.ing or ey.ing vt (15c) 1 a: to fix the eyes on: look at b: to watch closely
2: to furnish with an eye ~ vi, obs: seem, look -- ey.er n