Vigilance

How to spell vigilance

9 letters · 3 syllables

The most common mistake is vigilence. The letters people get wrong are highlighted.

vigilence vigilance

What people typed instead

• vigilence3 people

How to pronounce vigilance

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does vigilance mean?

1. nounCareful, watchful attention kept up over time to guard against danger, error, or wrongdoing.

Vigilance in a sentence

• Constant vigilance at the border crossing kept the smuggling network in check.

• The bank credits its fraud team's vigilance for catching the suspicious transfers early.

Where does vigilance come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin vigilantia, meaning 'wakefulness' or 'watchfulness', which was built on the adjective vigil, meaning 'awake' or 'alert', and the verb vigilare, 'to stay awake' or 'to keep watch'. The same root gives us the noun vigil, the all-night watch once kept before a religious feast, and it is a distant relative of vigour, since staying awake and being lively share an ancient sense of liveliness. English took the word in during the late 1500s, largely by way of French vigilance, which carried the meaning of careful, alert attention to danger. The modern sense, a steady watchfulness against risk or wrongdoing, has stayed remarkably close to the original idea of refusing to fall asleep on watch. For spelling, it helps to remember the buried word vigil sitting at the front, followed by the soft -ance ending rather than -ence.

How the word is built

• vigil- (from Latin vigil: awake, watchful)
• -ance (noun suffix forming a state or quality)