Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Vigilance
Vig′i-lance
,Noun.
[L.
vigilantia
: cf. F. vigilance
.] 1.
The quality or state of being vigilant; forbearance of sleep; wakefulness.
2.
Watchfulness in respect of danger; care; caution; circumspection.
Cowper.
And flaming ministers to watch and tend
Their earthly charge; of these the
I dread.
Their earthly charge; of these the
vigilance
I dread.
Milton.
3.
Guard; watch.
[Obs.]
“In at this gate none pass the vigilance here placed.” Milton.
Vigilance committee
, a volunteer committee of citizens for the oversight and protection of any interest, esp. one organized for the summary suppression and punishment of crime, as when the processes of law appear inadequate.
Webster 1828 Edition
Vigilance
VIG'ILANCE
,Noun.
1.
Forbearance of sleep; a state of being awake.2.
Watchfulness; circumspection; attention of the mind in discovering and guarding against danger, or providing for safety. Vigilance is a virtue of prime importance in a general. The vigilance of the dog is no less remarkable than his fidelity.3.
Guard; watch.In at this gate none pass the vigilance here plac'd.
Definition 2024
vigilance
vigilance
English
Noun
vigilance (usually uncountable, plural vigilances)
- Alert watchfulness.
- 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 8, in The Celebrity:
- I corralled the judge, and we started off across the fields, in no very mild state of fear of that gentleman's wife, whose vigilance was seldom relaxed. And thus we came by a circuitous route to Mohair, the judge occupied by his own guilty thoughts, and I by others not less disturbing.
-
- Close and continuous attention.
- 1837 March 4, Andrew Jackson, Farewell Address
- But you must remember, my fellow-citizens, that eternal vigilance by the people is the price of liberty, and that you must pay the price if you wish to secure the blessing.
- 1837 March 4, Andrew Jackson, Farewell Address
Translations
Alert watchfulness
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Close and continuous attention
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