Vigil \Vig"il\, n. [OE. vigile, L. vigilia, from vigil awake,
watchful, probably akin to E. wake: cf. F. vigile. See
Wake, v. i., and cf. Reveille, Surveillance, Vedette,
Vegetable, Vigor.]
1. Abstinence from sleep, whether at a time when sleep is
customary or not; the act of keeping awake, or the state
of being awake; sleeplessness; wakefulness; watch. "Worn
out by the labors and vigils of many months." --Macaulay.
[1913 Webster]
Nothing wears out a fine face like the vigils of the
card table and those cutting passions which attend
them. --Addison.
[1913 Webster]
2. Hence, devotional watching; waking for prayer, or other
religious exercises.
[1913 Webster]
So they in heaven their odes and vigils tuned.
--Milton.
[1913 Webster]
Be sober and keep vigil,
The Judge is at the gate. --Neale
(Rhythm of St.
Bernard).
[1913 Webster]
3. (Eccl.)
(a) Originally, the watch kept on the night before a
feast.
(b) Later, the day and the night preceding a feast.
[1913 Webster]
He that shall live this day, and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbors,
And say, "To-morrow is St. Crispian." --Shak.
[1913 Webster]
(c) A religious service performed in the evening preceding
a feast.
[1913 Webster]
Vigils of flowers or Watchings of flowers (Bot.), a
peculiar faculty belonging to the flowers of certain
plants of opening and closing their petals at certain
hours of the day. [R.]
[1913 Webster]
Source: The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
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81 Moby Thesaurus words for "vigil":
Mass, alertness, all-night vigil, bedtime prayer, camp meeting,
church, church service, compline, consciousness, custodianship,
custody, devotions, divine service, duty, eagle eye,
evening devotions, evensong, exercises, guard, guardedness,
guardianship, insomnia, insomniac, insomnolence, insomnolency,
invigilation, lauds, lidless vigil, liturgy, lookout, matins,
meeting, monitoring, morning devotions, night song, none, nones,
novena, observance, office, peeled eye, praise meeting, prayer,
prayer meeting, prayers, prime, prime song, proctoring, prudence,
public worship, qui vive, restlessness, revival, revival meeting,
sentience, service, sext, sharp eye, sleeplessness, stewardship,
surveillance, tent meeting, tierce, tossing and turning, undersong,
vesper, vespers, vigilance, vigils, wake, wakefulness, wariness,
watch, watch and ward, watch meeting, watch night,
watch-night service, watchful eye, watchfulness, watching,
weather eye
Source: Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
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Vigil \Vig"il\, n. [OE. vigile, L. vigilia, from vigil awake,
watchful, probably akin to E. wake: cf. F. vigile. See
Wake, v. i., and cf. Reveille, Surveillance, Vedette,
Vegetable, Vigor.]
1. Abstinence from sleep, whether at a time when sleep is
customary or not; the act of keeping awake, or the state
of being awake, or the state of being awake;
sleeplessness; wakefulness; watch. ``Worn out by the
labors and vigils of many months.'' --Macaulay.
Nothing wears out a fine face like the vigils of the
card table and those cutting passions which attend
them. --Addison.
2. Hence, devotional watching; waking for prayer, or other
religious exercises.
So they in heaven their odes and vigils tuned.
--Milton.
Be sober and keep vigil, The Judge is at the gate.
--Neale
(Rhythm of St.
Bernard).
3. (Eccl.)
(a) Originally, the watch kept on the night before a
feast.
(b) Later, the day and the night preceding a feast.
He that shall live this day, and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbors,
And say, ``To-morrow is St. Crispian.'' --Shak.
(c) A religious service performed in the evening preceding
a feast.
Vigils, or Watchings, of flowers (Bot.), a peculiar
faculty belonging to the flowers of certain plants of
opening and closing their petals as certain hours of the
day. [R.]
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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