vig·i·lant

[vij-uh-luhnt]
adjective
1.
keenly watchful to detect danger; wary: a vigilant sentry.
2.
ever awake and alert; sleeplessly watchful.

Origin:
1470–80; < Latin vigilant- (stem of vigilāns), present participle of vigilāre to be watchful. See vigil, -ant

vig·i·lant·ly, adverb
vig·i·lant·ness, noun
hy·per·vig·i·lant, adjective
hy·per·vig·i·lant·ly, adverb
hy·per·vig·i·lant·ness, noun
non·vig·i·lant, adjective
non·vig·i·lant·ly, adverb
non·vig·i·lant·ness, noun
pre·vig·i·lant, adjective
pre·vig·i·lant·ly, adverb
su·per·vig·i·lant, adjective
su·per·vig·i·lant·ly, adverb
un·vig·i·lant, adjective
un·vig·i·lant·ly, adverb

vigilant, vigilante.


2. wide-awake, sleepless. See alert.


1. careless.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To vigilant
00:10
Vigilant is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.
Collins
World English Dictionary
vigilant (ˈvɪdʒɪlənt) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
adj
keenly alert to or heedful of trouble or danger, as while others are sleeping or unsuspicious
 
[C15: from Latin vigilāns keeping awake, from vigilāre to be watchful; see vigil]
 
'vigilantly
 
adv
 
'vigilantness
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

vigilant
late 15c., from L. vigilantia "wakefulness," from vigilia (see vigil). Related: Vigilantly.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Example sentences
People behind the protection wall tend to be less vigilant or reduce private
  mitigation measures.
It depends a lot on how vigilant you are in keeping your software up to date.
We must be vigilant that trade be both free and fair to promote sustainable
  development and prosperity.
The health-and-safety inspectors are about as vigilant and incorruptible as
  they were a century ago.
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