voyeur

From: The Oxford American College Dictionary  | Date: 2006  

 

vo·yeur / voiˈyər; vwä-/ • n. a person who gains sexual pleasure from watching others when they are naked or engaged in sexual activity. ∎  a person who enjoys seeing the pain or distress of others. DERIVATIVES: vo·yeur·ism / ˈvoiyəˌrizəm; voiˈyərˌizəm; vwäˈyər-/ n. voy·eur·is·tic / ˌvoiyəˈristik; ˌvwäyə-/ adj. voy·eur·is·ti·cal·ly / ˌvoiyəˈristik(ə)lē; ˌvwäyə-/ adv. ORIGIN: early 20th cent.: from French, from voir ‘see.’