I. ˈī noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English ēage; akin to Old High German ouga eye, Latin oculus, Greek ōps eye, face, Sanskrit akṣi eye
Date: before 12th century
1.
a. : a specialized light-sensitive sensory structure of animals that in nearly all vertebrates, most arthropods, and some mollusks is the image-forming organ of sight ; especially : the nearly spherical usually paired hollow organ of sight in vertebrates that is filled with a jellylike material, is lined with a photosensitive retina, and is lodged in a bony orbit in the skull
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 eye for beauty
(3) : skill or ability dependent upon eyesight
a batter with a good eye
d. : look , glance
cast an eager eye
e.
(1) : an attentive look
kept an eye on his valuables
(2) : attention , notice
caught his eye
(3) : close observation : scrutiny
works under the eye of her boss
in the public eye
f. : point of view , judgment
beauty is in the eye of the beholder
— often used in plural
an offender in the eye s of the law
2. : something having an appearance suggestive of an eye: as
a. : the hole through the head of a needle
b. : a usually circular marking (as on a peacock's tail)
c. : loop ; especially : 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 especially when differently colored or marked ; specifically : 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 usually 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 eye of the problem — Norman Mailer
4. : the direction from which the wind is blowing
• eye·less ˈī-ləs adjective
• eye·like -ˌlīk adjective
•
- an eye for an eye
- my eye
- with an eye to
[
eye 1a: 1 optic nerve, 2 blind spot, 3 fovea, 4 sclera, 5 choroid, 6 retina, 7 ciliary body, 8 posterior chamber, 9 anterior chamber, 10 cornea, 11 lens, 12 iris, 13 suspensory ligament, 14 conjunctiva, 15 vitreous humor
]
II. verb
( eyed ; eye·ing or ey·ing )
Date: 15th century
transitive verb
1.
a.
(1) : to fix the eyes on : look at
they eyed him suspiciously
(2) : contemplate , consider
eye ing the choices
b. : to watch or study closely
eye ing changes in the stock market
2. : to furnish with an eye
intransitive verb
obsolete : seem , look
• ey·er ˈī(-ə)r noun