bystanders

noun

plural of bystander
as in spectators
someone who sees or watches something bystanders rushed to help the victim of the mugging

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of bystanders The crash sent emergency crews racing to the sports complex in northeast Wichita, where bystanders had already stepped forward to help the injured. — Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026 Rather than concentrating solely on those responsible, Terzić widens the circle to the classmates who were silent bystanders who never intervened. — Essie Assibu, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026 Authorities said no other passengers or bystanders were injured in the incident. — Nicole Alarcon, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026 In one district, bystanders rescued a woman who was being swept down a street by the floodwaters, footage obtained by NTV television showed. — ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026 There was no way for the bystanders to retrieve the wounded man without exposing themselves to the sniper. — Ben Taub, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026 Inside the store, bystanders and officers tried to help a wounded man until emergency responders arrived. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 12 Oct. 2026 Video clips from bystanders shortly after the shooting Thursday show Belgal on the pavement with his hands cuffed and ICE officers nearby. — Arkansas Online, 10 Oct. 2026 Three bystanders injured in a firefight in the Home Depot parking lot. — Patricia Murphy, AJC.com, 5 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bystanders
  1. spectators
  2. observers
  3. viewers
Noun
  • According to Long, the gathering grew from about 40 cars and a few hundred spectators in 2014 to 300 display cars and thousands of visitors at Luftgekühlt 12 this year.
    — Chris Hardesty, AJC.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The rowing competition on the Charles River between Boston and Cambridge attracts about 12,000 athletes and 370,000 spectators from around the world for the three-day event.
    — Anna Meiler, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of spectators
Noun
  • Coleman found instructive a 1938 ruling in favor of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who challenged a radio station that placed observers on a rooftop next to Forbes Field and paid them to provide play-by-play for an unauthorized radio broadcast.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Such actions are scaring people away from coming to court, whether as witnesses, defendants or observers, Bonta said, and amount to a blatant abuse of power.
    — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of observers
Noun
  • But giving him a national platform without confronting his record does a disservice to viewers and to the people of Illinois.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Asking viewers to contemplate childhood pain while monitoring digestion requires two kinds of attention that Duffield only intermittently brings together.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of viewers

Browse Nearby Words

bystander
bystanders
bystreet
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Cite this Entry

“Bystanders.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bystanders. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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