Vigilance: meaning, definitions and examples

Use in situations where active and careful monitoring and attention are required, often to guard against potential dangers or threats.

• The security team maintained constant vigilance to protect the premises.
• Vigilance is crucial in this line of work to prevent accidents.

Best used to describe a state of being quick to notice and respond to events or changes, often implying readiness for action.

• The driver's alertness prevented a serious accident on the highway.
• Staying alert during long shifts can be challenging but necessary.

Applied in contexts where someone is keeping careful oversight, often for potential risks or needs for action.

• The watchfulness of the lifeguard ensured the safety of all swimmers.
• Continuous watchfulness is necessary in wildlife protection.

Use when highlighting the quality of paying close attention to something or someone, often in a context of care or detail-oriented tasks.

• Her attentiveness in class resulted in high grades.
• The nurse's attentiveness to the patient's needs was commendable.

Use 'vigilance' when you want to describe a state of being watchful and alert, usually to avoid danger or detect problems.

• The security team maintained vigilance throughout the night.
• Parents must exercise vigilance when their children use the internet.

Use 'diligence' to describe persistent and hardworking attention to a task or duty, often to ensure thoroughness and high quality.

• His diligence in his studies earned him top grades.
• Completing the project on time required a lot of diligence.

Use 'carefulness' when referring to the quality of being cautious and avoiding mistakes or accidents.

• Carefulness is essential when handling fragile items.
• Her carefulness ensured that no details were overlooked in the report.

Use 'thoroughness' to refer to the quality of being very attentive to detail and covering every aspect of a task or subject.

• The inspector's thoroughness uncovered many issues that needed to be addressed.
• Her thoroughness in research made her thesis outstanding.