gegenübersehen

gegenübersehen is a German verb used to describe the act of failing to notice or acknowledge someone in a social or interpersonal context. It can refer to a momentary perceptual lapse—seeing someone present but not registering them—and more broadly to neglecting the other in conversation or interaction. In everyday speech the verb is uncommon; speakers typically use übersehen or ignorieren.

Etymology: The form combines Gegenüber, meaning the person one is facing or the counterpart, with sehen (to see). Because gegenübersehen is not a standard everyday compound, it appears mainly in analytical, literary, or academic writing, where the emphasis is on the relational aspect of perception rather than on physical sight alone.

Context and usage: In philosophy, sociology, or discourse analysis, gegenübersehen may appear in discussions of recognition, attention, and the ethical obligation to acknowledge the Other. In practical terms, it denotes a failure to take another person into account within a given interaction. It is important to distinguish from übersehen (to overlook) or ignorieren (to ignore); gegenübersehen foregrounds the relationship to the interlocutor and the situated encounter.

Related terms include übersehen, ignorieren, das Gegenüber (the other person as a social counterpart), and soziale Wahrnehmung (social perception).