bystander
noun
by·stand·er
ˈbī-ˌstan-dər 
: one who is present but not taking part in a situation or event : a chance spectator
innocent bystanders who were injured in the shooting
Examples of bystander in a Sentence
Two innocent bystanders were injured in the shooting.
bystanders rushed to help the victim of the mugging
Recent Examples on the Web
For over an hour Monday morning, two men were stranded on a small island on the White River until a bystander heard their cries and called 911, ultimately leading to their safe rescue by the Indianapolis Fire Department.
—
Noe Padilla, The Indianapolis Star, 9 Dec. 2024
Day 2 The jury asked to see key videos shown during the trial -- police body camera footage, Penny's interrogation video and a bystander's video on Wednesday.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 9 Dec. 2024
Advertisement Jurors watched videos recorded by bystanders and by police body cameras and saw how Penny explained his actions to officers on the scene and later in a station house interview room.
—Jennifer Peltz, Los Angeles Times, 2 Dec. 2024
The racing establishment of this era resisted self-reform, and only got serious about redefining safety standards following crashes in which innocent bystanders were killed and public outrage ensued.
—Seyward Darby, Longreads, 20 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for bystander 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noe Padilla, The Indianapolis Star, 9 Dec. 2024
Day 2 The jury asked to see key videos shown during the trial -- police body camera footage, Penny's interrogation video and a bystander's video on Wednesday.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 9 Dec. 2024
Advertisement Jurors watched videos recorded by bystanders and by police body cameras and saw how Penny explained his actions to officers on the scene and later in a station house interview room.
—Jennifer Peltz, Los Angeles Times, 2 Dec. 2024
The racing establishment of this era resisted self-reform, and only got serious about redefining safety standards following crashes in which innocent bystanders were killed and public outrage ensued.
—Seyward Darby, Longreads, 20 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for bystander
Dictionary Entries Near bystander
Cite this Entry
“Bystander.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bystander. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
bystander
noun
by·stand·er
-ˌstan-dər
: a person standing near but taking no part in what is happening
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share