A person who sees an event, usually something important like an accident or crime. As a verb, it means to see something happen.
From Old English 'witnes', meaning 'knowledge' or 'testimony', from 'witan' (to know). It originally focused on knowing and telling the truth about what happened.
Before it meant 'person who saw,' witness was about knowledge and testimony. The law still treats a witness as a living piece of evidence, carrying what they know into the courtroom.
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