Alert

How to spell alert

5 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce alert

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does alert mean?

1. adjectiveWatchful and quick to notice or respond to anything unusual.
2. verbTo warn someone of a danger, problem, or situation needing attention.
3. nounA warning or signal of danger, or a state of watchful readiness.

Alert in a sentence

• adjective

  The night guard stayed alert through the long shift.

• verb

  The sensor will alert staff the moment temperatures rise.

• noun

  The weather service issued a flood alert for the region.

• adjective

  A good driver remains alert to sudden changes in traffic.

• verb

  Please alert the manager if a customer complains.

• noun

  Hospital staff were placed on high alert during the emergency.

Where does alert come from?

Language of origin: Italian

This word came into English in the seventeenth century from a military expression in Italian, all'erta, which literally meant 'to the watchtower' or 'on the lookout'. The erta part referred to a high lookout point or steep slope, traced back to the Latin erigere, meaning 'to raise up' or 'set upright', the same root that gives us 'erect'. Soldiers standing all'erta were standing watch, ready and attentive, and the phrase passed into French as alerte before reaching English. At first an alert was specifically the state of military readiness, but the meaning broadened to describe anyone who is watchful or quick to notice. The single 'l' and the swallowed first syllable are the usual spelling traps, a reminder that the word began as two Italian words squeezed into one.

How the word is built

• al- (from Italian all', 'to the')
• ert (from erta: lookout, watchtower)