visit

 
Pronunciation: /ˈvɪzɪt/

verb (visits, visiting, visited)

[with object]
  • 1go to see and spend time with (someone) socially: I came to visit my grandmother [no object]: North American he went out to visit with his pals
  • stay temporarily with (someone) or at (a place) as a guest or tourist: they would like to visit Oxford [no object]: I don’t live here—I’m only visiting
  • [no object] North American informal chat: there was nothing to do but visit with one another
  • 2go to see (someone or something) for a specific purpose, such as to give or receive professional advice: inspectors visit all the hotels
  • (as adjective visiting) (of an academic) working for a fixed period of time at another institution: a visiting professor
  • access and view (a website or web page): high entertainment value is one good reason to visit the site’s ultra-cool home page
  • (chiefly in biblical use) (of God) come to (a person or place) in order to bring comfort or salvation: He shall visit earth in mercy
  • 3inflict (something harmful or unpleasant) on someone: the mockery visited upon him by his schoolmates
  • (of something harmful or unpleasant) afflict (someone): they were visited with epidemics of a strange disease
  • archaic punish (a person or wrongful act): offences were visited with the loss of eyes or ears

noun

  • an act of going to see a person or place as a guest, tourist, etc.: I’ll pay him a visit soon a visit to the doctor
  • a temporary stay with a person or at a place: she was on a visit to the United States
  • North American informal a chat: a telephone visit

Derivatives

visitable

adjective

Origin:

Middle English: from Old French visiter or Latin visitare 'go to see', frequentative of visare 'to view', from videre 'to see'

Spelling rule

Do not double the final consonant when adding endings which begin with a vowel to a word which ends in a vowel plus a consonant, if the stress is not at the end of the word (as in target): (visits, visiting, visited).