vicinity

noun

vi·​cin·​i·​ty və-ˈsi-nə-tē 

plural vicinities

1

: a surrounding area or district : neighborhood

2

: neighborhood sense 3b

3

: the quality or state of being near : proximity

Did you know?

Howdy, neighbor! Today we cozy up to vicinity, a word with neighborly origins that was welcomed into English as a French import in the 16th century from Middle French vicinité. It comes ultimately from Latin vicus, meaning "row of houses" or "village," by way of Latin vicinus, meaning "neighboring." Other descendants of vicinus in English include vicinal (a synonym of local) and vicinage, a synonym of vicinity in the sense of "a neighboring or surrounding district." Both of these are formal and rare, but vicinage is notable for giving title to the Vicinage Clause, a segment of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution that entitles an accused person to "an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law."

Synonyms of vicinity

• neighborhood
• backyard
• environs

Examples of vicinity in a Sentence

there are no hotels in the vicinity of the hospital

the vicinity of the town's only elementary school was one reason why the young couple bought the house

Recent Examples on the Web

And Israeli drones struck the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central city of Deir al Balah, wounding 10 people, the hospital said. — Los Angeles Times, 25 July 2026

And Israeli drones struck the vicinity of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central city of Deir al-Balah, wounding 10 people, the hospital said. — ABC News, 25 July 2026

Skubal is not blind to the potential for headlines that exists every time a microphone or camera enters his vicinity. — Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 22 July 2026

The Missed Connections feature uses your phone's location data to show people who have been in your vicinity recently. — Jordan Minor, PC Magazine, 21 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle French vicinité, from Latin vicinitat-, vicinitas, from vicinus neighboring, from vicus row of houses, village; akin to Goth weihs village, Old Church Slavic vĭsĭ, Greek oikos, oikia house

First Known Use

1560, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing vicinity

• in the vicinity of

Rhymes for vicinity

• affinity
• divinity
• infinity
• salinity
• virginity
• alkalinity
• consanguinity
• crystallinity
• femininity
• masculinity

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Kids Definition

vicinity

noun

vi·​cin·​i·​ty və-ˈsin-ət-ē 

plural vicinities

1

: a surrounding area or district

in the vicinity of her home

2

: an approximate amount, extent, or degree : neighborhood

walks in the vicinity of 20 miles a week