visit

1 of 2

verb

vis·​it ˈvi-zət How to pronounce visit (audio)
visited ˈvi-zə-təd How to pronounce visit (audio)
ˈviz-təd
; visiting ˈvi-zə-tiŋ How to pronounce visit (audio)
ˈviz-tiŋ

transitive verb

1
a
: to pay a call on as an act of friendship or courtesy
b
: to reside with temporarily as a guest
c
: to go to see or stay at (a place) for a particular purpose (such as business or sightseeing)
d
: to go or come officially to inspect or oversee
a bishop visiting his parishes
2
: to go to see in order to comfort or help
3
a(1)
: afflict
visited his people with distempersTobias Smollett
(2)
: inflict, impose
visited his wrath upon them
b
: avenge
visited the sins of the fathers upon the children
c
: to present itself to or come over momentarily
was visited by a strange notion
d
archaic : comfort
used of the Deity
visit us with Thy salvationCharles Wesley

intransitive verb

1
: to make a visit
also : to make frequent or regular visits
2
: chat, converse
enjoys visiting with the neighbors

visit

2 of 2

noun

1
a
: a short stay : call
b
: a brief residence as a guest
c
: an extended stay : sojourn
2
: a journey to and stay or short sojourn at a place
3
: an official or professional call or tour : visitation
4
: the act of a naval officer in boarding a merchant ship on the high seas in exercise of the right of search

Examples of visit in a Sentence

Verb She is visiting her aunt in New York. When are you coming to visit? He is visiting a client in Phoenix. She visits her doctor regularly. I would like to visit Rome someday. City officials visited the building site. Our town was once visited by the President. Be sure to visit our website. Noun We had a visit from the company president. Our son came home for a visit. Have you been here before, or is this your first visit? We had a nice visit after the meeting.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Verb
The police have found a burner phone, a water bottle and protein bar that were reportedly bought at the nearby Starbucks the suspect visited, and a backpack that reportedly contained Monopoly money and a Tommy Hilfiger jacket. Lindsey Choo, Forbes, 9 Dec. 2024 How to claim your winnings People who win the jackpot have to visit their state's lottery headquarters to claim their prizes, depending on the dollar amount. Julia Gomez, USA TODAY, 9 Dec. 2024
Noun
Their visit to Capitol Hill also came with a warning to lawmakers – join Trump in making cuts or pay the price. Melissa Cruz, USA TODAY, 11 Dec. 2024 The visit was Lai’s first to the United States since becoming president in May. Wayne Chang, CNN, 10 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for visit 

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French visiter, from Latin visitare, frequentative of visere to go to see, frequentative of vidēre to see

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 3d

Noun

1621, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of visit was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near visit

Cite this Entry

“Visit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/visit. Accessed 13 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

visit

1 of 2 verb
vis·​it ˈviz-ət How to pronounce visit (audio)
visited ˈviz-ət-əd How to pronounce visit (audio)
ˈviz-təd
; visiting ˈviz-ət-iŋ How to pronounce visit (audio)
ˈviz-tiŋ
1
: to go to see in order to comfort or help
visit the sick
2
a
: to pay a call upon as an act of friendship or courtesy
b
: to go or come to see on business
c
: to live with for a time as a guest
3
: to go to for pleasure
visit the zoo
4
: to make a visit or frequent or regular visits
5
: chat entry 1 sense 1
enjoys visiting with the neighbors

visit

2 of 2 noun
1
: a brief stay : call
a visit with friends
2
: a stay as a guest
a weekend visit
3
: a journey to and brief stay at a place especially for a particular purpose
a visit to the museum
4
: an official or professional call (as of a doctor to treat a patient)
Etymology

Verb

Middle English visiten "to go to a person especially to give comfort," from early French visiter (same meaning), derived from Latin visere "to go to see," from vidēre "to see" — related to vision

Medical Definition

visit

1 of 2 transitive verb
vis·​it ˈviz-ət How to pronounce visit (audio)
1
: to go to attend (a patient)
2
: to go to see (as a physician or dentist) for professional service

visit

2 of 2 noun
1
: a professional call (as by a physician to treat a patient)
2
: a call upon a professional person (as a physician or dentist) for consultation or treatment
make regular visits to your dentist

More from Merriam-Webster on visit

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