common sight
4
1.0
- noun
:
vista común
- Common Eiders, the quintessential ocean duck, are a common sight in the bay.
- become a common sight
Examples
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Veiled women have now become a common sight on U.S. and European streets.
Academic text (2009) -
Mixed-race people were therefore a common sight in Elmina.
Academic text (2009) -
By then, she says, women were a more common sight in the courtroom.
Academic text (2001) -
Street protests and battles between police and students became a common sight in the everyday life of the city.
Academic text (1991) -
Toilet locks are a common sight in houses with toddlers.
Blog text (7) -
Dumping of waste in open spaces, deserts, and water bodies is a common sight across the region.
Blog text (28) -
Yet still, piles of photocopied course booklets are a common sight on campuses.
Blog text (29) -
Block printing of tablecloths is a common sight in the Isfahan bazaar (A).
Academic text (2007) -
During the course of my fieldwork in 1992-93, bogolan shirts, vests, and dresses became an increasingly common sight in Bamako's streets, nightclubs, and schools.
Academic text (1997) -
Electric cars have become a common sight in many cities as more people choose environmentally friendly vehicles.
How Common
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a person, thing, or event frequently seen' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'common' (frequent/typical) with 'sight' (something seen). This simple adjectival + noun composition follows standard noun-phrase semantics and is cross-linguistically regular, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will understand it.
Etymology
The phrase common sight paints a clear picture: common means usual and sight is something you can see. So a common sight is something people often see in a place, which is why it means 'a person, thing, or event that is frequently seen'.