voyeuristic

adjective

voy·​eur·​is·​tic ˌvwä-(ˌ)yər-ˈi-stik  ˌvȯi-ər- 

: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a voyeur

voyeuristic drives

… confronting her beauty gave him a bad conscience and made him feel shamefully voyeuristic …

—Phillip Roth

: relating to or derived from voyeurism

voyeuristic pleasure

Through the video surveillance system, Polly engages in voyeuristic eavesdropping.

—Judith Mayne

… to demonstrate that the voyeuristic thrill of watching a stripper ceases at the moment of nakedness.

—Mark Morris

voyeuristically

ˌvwä-(ˌ)yər-ˈi-sti-k(ə-)lē 

ˌvȯi-ər-

adverb

In that film, the cameras voyeuristically followed actor Richard Gere as he worked out and dressed up.

—The Wall Street Journal

Examples of voyeuristic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This one-on-one exchange around food with strategic mood lighting has a casualness that brings with it a voyeuristic feel. —Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 13 Feb. 2025

Transgression is the other component that helps voyeuristic business succeed. —Maxim Voronov, Scientific American, 24 Jan. 2025

With access to the full audio from inside the control room from numerous performances, Thompson takes the viewer inside some of the show’s wildest moments, delivering voyeuristic thrills like hearing producers scream when Kanye West nearly walks offstage. —Jason Newman, Rolling Stone, 25 Jan. 2025

In voyeuristic businesses, this emotional hook often obscures deeper realities of exploitation, inequality and ethical breaches. —Maxim Voronov, Scientific American, 24 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1919, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

voyeuristic

adjective

voy·​eur·​is·​tic ˌvwä-(ˌ)yər-ˈis-tik  ˌvȯi-ər- 

: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a voyeur

voyeuristic drives

voyeuristically

-ti-k(ə-)lē 

adverb