in plain sight
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Clearly visible or obvious, yet unnoticed or ignored.
Literally: in open view
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
The thief was hiding in plain sight among the crowd.
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Equivalents & related
Common questions
What does “in plain sight” mean?
Clearly visible or obvious, yet unnoticed or ignored. Literally: in open view
Is “in plain sight” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.
What is the closest equivalent?
“chình ình” (Tiếng Việt) — near equivalent.