Meaning & use
untrained eye
Last updated
Meaning
phrasefixed phrase
The way something appears to a person who lacks special knowledge or skill in that area.
Grammar: Used mainly after 'to' or 'for': to the untrained eye, for the untrained eye.
Patterns
- to the untrained eye
- for the untrained eye
- look/seem/appear ... to the untrained eye
To the untrained eye, the two paintings look identical, but an expert can tell them apart instantly.
The rock seems ordinary to the untrained eye, yet it contains tiny fossils.
For the untrained eye, the medical scan is just a blur of gray shapes.
Common combinations
- to the untrained eye
- To the untrained eye, the code looks like random letters.
- seem/appear ... to the untrained eye
- The repair seemed perfect to the untrained eye.
- look like ... to the untrained eye
- It looks like a weed to the untrained eye.
- invisible to the untrained eye
- The security mark is invisible to the untrained eye.
Synonyms and how they differ
- layman
- A layman is a person without special knowledge; 'the untrained eye' refers to that person's way of seeing, not the person.
- non-expert
- Non-expert is a general noun or adjective; 'untrained eye' is a fixed phrase that focuses on visual judgment.
Opposites
Commonly confused: untrained eye or untrained?
untrained eye vs untrained
Untrained alone means 'not taught or practiced'; the phrase 'untrained eye' is figurative and means 'the view of someone without expertise'.
Practice
_____ the untrained eye, the diamond looked like a piece of glass.
Choose one answer.
'To the untrained eye' is the fixed expression meaning 'as it appears to someone without expertise'. 'For' can appear in some contexts, but the standard idiom uses 'to'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “untrained eye”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.