invigilate
Americanverb (used without object)
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to keep watch.
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British. to keep watch over students at an examination.
verb
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US word: proctor. to watch examination candidates, esp to prevent cheating
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archaic to keep watch
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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invigilatesimple
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invigilatessimple
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have invigilatedperfect
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has invigilatedperfect
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am invigilatingprogressive
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are invigilatingprogressive
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is invigilatingprogressive
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have been invigilatingperfect progressive
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has been invigilatingperfect progressive
Past
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invigilatedsimple
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had invigilatedperfect
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was invigilatingprogressive
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were invigilatingprogressive
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had been invigilatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of invigilate
1545–55; < Latin invigilātus (past participle of invigilāre to keep watch, stay up late), equivalent to in- in- 2 + vigilā- (stem of vigilāre to watch; see vigil) + -tus past participle suffix
Explanation
Invigilate means to watch over the administration of a test to ensure that no cheating occurs.You won't see invigilate used often but when you do, think about bubbling answer sheets and keeping your eyes on your own paper. Don't confuse this word with interrogate. The two words sound similar but occupy different grammatical positions within a sentence. You interrogate a person, meaning you ask them questions, but you invigilate a test, meaning you watch its administration. You don't invigilate a test-taker, even if they are the ones whom you, as a test's invigilator, want to interrogate when your suspicions of cheating are aroused. The word derives from the Latin vigilare, which means "to watch over."
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
