vigil

CEFRC1

/ˈvɪd͡ʒəl/

noun

Türkçe translations

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In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A period of staying awake to watch or pray.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    A period of observation or surveillance at any hour.

Examples

  • She kept an all-night vigil over her sick child.

  • We must maintain a constant vigil.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
4

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. The eve of a religious festival in which staying awake is part of the ritual devotions.

  2. An instance of keeping awake during normal sleeping hours, especially to keep watch or pray.

  3. A quiet demonstration in support of a cause.

More examples

In context

  • His dog kept vigil outside the hospital for eight days while he was recovering from an accident.

  • The protesters kept vigil outside the conference centre in which the party congress was being held.

  • Eventually the body trade grew so reckless that relatives took to holding graveside vigils, lest their loved ones disappear in the night.

Synonyms

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Nearby

Origin

noun

From Middle English vigile (“a devotional watching”), from Old French vigile, from Latin vigilia (“wakefulness, watch”), from vigil (“awake”), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵ- (“to be strong, lively, awake”). Doublet of Wigilia. See also wake and vigor, from the same root.