vicinity
Americannoun
plural
vicinities-
the area or region near or about a place; surrounding district; neighborhood.
There are no stores in the vicinity of our house.
-
state or fact of being near; proximity; propinquity.
He was troubled by the vicinity of the nuclear testing area.
noun
-
a surrounding, adjacent, or nearby area; neighbourhood
-
the fact or condition of being close in space or relationship
Etymology
Origin of vicinity
1550–60; < Latin vīcīnitās, equivalent to vīcīn ( us ) near ( vīc ( us ) wick 3, neighborhood + -īnus -ine 1 ) + -itās -ity
Explanation
If something is in your vicinity, it's in the surrounding area or nearby region — it's in the neighborhood, so to speak. If there's a garbage dump in your vicinity, you'll certainly smell it. The noun vicinity evolved from the Latin vicinitas, which means “of or pertaining to neighbors or a neighborhood.” Not until 1796 did the word expand in meaning to also describe a “surrounding district.” Said American author Washington Irving, “A kind heart is a fountain of gladness, making everything in its vicinity freshen into smiles.” Slang for vicinity include neck of the woods and turf.
Vocabulary lists containing vicinity
100 SAT Words Beginning with "V"
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"Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad"
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Grown
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
How anyone else in their vicinity is affected by their actions is an afterthought.
From Salon • Apr. 3, 2026
The IDF said it wasn’t aware of any airstrikes in the vicinity of prisons.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026
Unite argued it genuinely believed the injunction only applied to protests in the immediate vicinity of the depots, not further along collection routes.
From BBC • Mar. 17, 2026
Some record the interactions of immigration agents pulling over and stopping residents, while others yell, blow whistles and warn people in the vicinity to avoid the area.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2026
I’m stunned at the course of events that’s brought the Prophet Muhammad and Jeremy into such close vicinity.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
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.
