vigil

noun

vig·​il ˈvi-jəl 

1

: the act of keeping awake at times when sleep is customary

also : a period of wakefulness

2

: an event or a period of time when a person or group stays in a place and quietly waits, prays, etc., especially at night

a candlelight vigil

kept vigil at her bedside

3

a

: a watch formerly kept on the night before a religious feast with prayer or other devotions

b

: the day before a religious feast observed as a day of spiritual preparation

c

: evening or nocturnal devotions or prayers

—usually used in plural

Synonyms

• lookout
• surveillance
• watch

Examples of vigil in a Sentence

kept vigil at their ailing son's bedside the entire time he was in the hospital

Recent Examples on the Web

An attendee holds an electric candle on Liberty Square in Taipei, Taiwan, on June 4, 2025, during a vigil marking the 36th anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing. —Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 June 2025

Hundreds of people squeezed into the Jewish Community Center in Boulder, Colo., for a vigil that featured prayer, singing and emotional testimony from a victim and witnesses of the firebombing attack in the city’s downtown, after a federal judge blocked the deportation of the suspect’s family. —Colleen Slevin, Los Angeles Times, 5 June 2025

Honoring the victims: A vigil for victims of the attack is set for Wednesday evening. —Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 5 June 2025

Listen to this article Some 200 people gathered Wednesday night at a heartbreaking vigil for the young sailors who died or were injured on the Mexican Navy ship Cuauhtemoc after its crash into the Brooklyn Bridge. —Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 21 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English vigile, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin & Latin; Late Latin vigilia watch on the eve of a feast, from Latin, wakefulness, watch, from vigil awake, watchful; akin to Latin vigēre to be vigorous, vegēre to enliven — more at wake

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3a

Phrases Containing vigil

• keep vigil
• vigil light

Kids Definition

vigil

noun

vig·​il ˈvij-əl 

1

a

: the day before a religious feast

b

: prayers or religious services held in the evening or at night

—usually used in plural

2

: an act or period of staying awake at times when one normally would be sleeping

an all-night vigil spent awaiting her return

3

: an act or period of attentive watching : watch

kept vigil at the bedside of his ill son