[vig.il] n [ME vigile, fr. OF, fr. LL & L; LL vigilia watch on the eve of a feast, fr. L, wakefulness, watch, fr. vigil awake, watchful; akin to L vigere to be vigorous, vegere to enliven--more at wake] (13c) 1 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--usu. used in pl.
2: the act of keeping awake at times when sleep is customary; also: a period of wakefulness
3: an act or period of watching or surveillance: watch