rubberneck

[ruhb-er-nek]

verb (used without object)

1. to look about or stare with great curiosity, as by craning the neck or turning the head.

verb (used with object)

1. to gawk at.

   The tieup was due to drivers rubbernecking an accident.

noun

1. a sightseer; tourist.

2. an extremely curious person.

rubberneck

/ ˈrʌbəˌnɛk /

noun

1. a person who stares or gapes inquisitively, esp in a naive or foolish manner

2. a sightseer or tourist

verb

1. (intr) to stare in a naive or foolish manner

Word History and Origins

Origin of rubberneck¹

An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900; rubber ¹ + neck

Example Sentences

Like the show it criticizes, it is an exercise in rubbernecking, capitalizing on the contestants’ anguish and suffering instead of offering healthy media analysis in hindsight as medicine.

From Salon

To celebrate the colorful little decals that keep Angelenos rubbernecking on the road, we asked locals and visitors to share their favorite bumper stickers.

From Los Angeles Times

One could read this strange, extraneous sight as Perkins’ attempt to send up our macabre fixation with death, rubbernecking at gruesome sights we should want to turn away from.

From Salon

And yet, every few blocks she rubbernecked at another woman’s look, her famous New Yawk accent lifting and tumbling in pleasure at what she saw:

From New York Times

The salesroom at Christie’s was packed on Tuesday evening, as spectators rubbernecked to see if buyers would compete for multimillion-dollar artworks at an auction house still hobbled by a cyberattack.

From New York Times