sight unseen.
From a strictly logical point of view, the phrase makes little sense. In practice, however, it has an accepted and useful meaning: “(of an item) bought without an inspection before the purchase.”
Sometimes the phrase is erroneously written *"site unseen" — e.g.: “Experts say the Web could be even more dangerous than the telephone because the medium will soon showcase virtual walk-throughs of property and homes for sale, in which purchases could be hustled site unseen [read sight unseen].” Bradley Inman, “Real Estate on the Web,” San Diego Union-Trib., 20 July 1997, at H3.
Language-Change Index — “sight unseen” misspelled *"site unseen": Stage 1.
*Invariably inferior forms.
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Quotation of the Day: “Style cannot be distinguished from matter. When a writer conceives an idea he conceives it in a form of words. That form of words constitutes his style, and it is absolutely governed by the idea.” Arnold Bennett, Literary Taste: How to Form It 44 (n.d. [1925]).
