observer-independent
|ob-ser-ver-in-de-pend-ent|
🇺🇸
/əbˈzɝvɚ ɪnˈdɛpəndənt/
🇬🇧
/əbˈzɜːvə(r) ɪnˈdɛpəndənt/
not affected by the observer
Etymology
'observer-independent' originates from Modern English, specifically a compound of the noun 'observer' and the adjective 'independent'; 'observer' ultimately comes from Latin, specifically the verb 'observare,' where 'ob-' meant 'toward' and 'servare' meant 'to keep or watch', and 'independent' ultimately comes from Latin, specifically 'independens,' where 'in-' meant 'not' and 'dependere' meant 'to hang from or depend'.
'observer' came into English via Old French and Middle English from Latin 'observare', and 'independent' came into English via Old French and Middle English from Latin 'independens'; the modern hyphenated compound 'observer-independent' formed in Modern English to express the combined sense.
Initially the components meant 'one who observes' and 'not hanging from/depending on', and over time the compound came to mean 'not depending on the observer' or 'invariant with respect to observers'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
not depending on or affected by a particular observer; having the same description or value for all observers (often used in physics to mean invariant under change of reference frame).
A physically consistent theory should be observer-independent under coordinate transformations.
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Adjective 2
existing or holding true regardless of individual perspectives, beliefs, or knowledge; not mind-dependent (used in philosophy and ethics).
Some philosophers argue that moral values are observer-independent facts.
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Last updated: 2026/01/16 03:48