see eye to eye
Meaning
To agree fully with someone; to share the same opinion or viewpoint.
Origin
From the idea of looking at something from the same visual angle; recorded from the early 1600s meaning to agree or be in harmony.
Notes
Means full agreement; often used in negatives (“don’t see eye to eye”). Neutral to mildly emphatic, common in conversation and workplace contexts.
Examples
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My sister and I don’t always see eye to eye, but we still respect each other.
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The manager and the client finally saw eye to eye on the project timeline.
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We won’t see eye to eye on politics, so let’s talk about something else.
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If you want this partnership to work, we need to see eye to eye on quality standards.
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They rarely see eye to eye, yet they make a strong team when it counts.
Grammar & Usage Notes
Usually used with a subject + see/doesn’t see + eye to eye (often with “with + person” or “on/over + topic”). Tense inflects (see/saw/seen); phrase itself is fixed.
Synonyms
- agree
- be in agreement
- be on the same page
- share the same view
- be of one mind
Antonyms
- disagree
- be at odds
- clash
- differ
- see things differently