vigil
wakefulness or watchfulness maintained for any reason during the normal hours for sleeping:They passed many hours in vigil.
a watch or a period of watchful attention maintained at night or at other times: The nurse kept her vigil at the bedside of the dying man.
a quiet demonstration to support a cause, protest an injustice, honor the dead, etc.: A candlelight vigil in remembrance of the two fallen officers will be held tonight at sundown.
Ecclesiastical.
Sometimes vigils . a nocturnal devotional exercise or service, especially on the eve before a church festival:The Easter vigil reflects on the holy sacraments as well as the resurrection and ascension of Christ.
the eve, or day and night, before a church festival, especially an eve that is a fast.
a period of wakefulness from inability to sleep.
Origin of vigil
1Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for vigil
/ (ˈvɪdʒɪl) /
a purposeful watch maintained, esp at night, to guard, observe, pray, etc
the period of such a watch
RC Church Church of England the eve of certain major festivals, formerly observed as a night spent in prayer: often marked by fasting and abstinence and a special Mass and divine office
a period of sleeplessness; insomnia
Origin of vigil
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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