These words refer to the attentive viewing of something. See is the most general of these, with a wide range of uses outside this context. Here it suggests equally well an accidental or deliberate viewing of an occurrence: happening to see the suspect escaping down a side alley; eager to see the outcome of the cricket match. Because the word is so general, it carries few connotations beyond those the context may give it. Watch stresses attention or fascination. Whether the viewing began by accident or design, watch suggests the complete engagement of interest, at least while the watching continues. By contrast, one might see something happen and turn away without interest: breathlessly watching the spider attempt to spin its web for the third time. Watch , furthermore, is common as an imperative, whereas see is much less frequently so used: Just watch what happens when I press this button.

Look is like see in suggesting no particular connotations for the act of viewing something: looking lazily out over the city; looking frantically for some sign that would indicate where the lost path lay. Look is like watch , in being frequently used as an imperative: Look at that lizard over there on that rock. In this use, the word suggests the effort needed to see something before it disappears, whereas watch in the imperative might suggest a necessary attendance on a whole process about to begin. Witness , like see , is less frequently used in the imperative, but is more emphatic than see about an attentive viewing of a whole experience: coming in time to witness the changing of the guard; witnessing the whole gun battle from an upstairs window. The word may suggest either a deliberate of an accidental viewing.

All the remaining words can be used in the imperative as well as the declarative, but in either case, their emphasis on attentiveness is apparent. Notice suggests the taking in, almost by chance, of a small detail that may yet be important to some larger pattern: noticing that he kept his fist clenched in his pocket as he talked. In the imperative, the word is a call to attend to some small detail that might otherwise be overlooked: Notice the scratch on the wood beside the lock. Regard suggests viewing at a distance in a safe, pre-arranged position or with a definite emotional attitude: regarding the movements of the man across the street with suspicion. Observe is like regard in suggesting a process of viewing something from one or more vantage points, but it implies a detached, almost clinical frame of mind, engrossed in a detailed examination: observing the customs of the tribe for two full years. Like watch , observe in the imperative suggests a process about to unfold. Only its slightly greater formality distinguishes observe from watch in this usage: Observe the expression on her face when she hears the verdict. Of this group of words, inspect puts the most emphasis by far on a thorough and detailed examination of something through direct handling or involvement with it: inspecting the child’s body for any sign of the recurring rash; Inspect these photographs of the two murder weapons.