vigilante
[ vij-uh-lan-tee ]
/ ˌvɪdʒ əˈlæn ti /
noun
a member of a vigilance committee.
any person who takes the law into his or her own hands, as by avenging a crime.
adjective
done violently and summarily, without recourse to lawful procedures: vigilante justice.
RELATED CONTENT
RELATED WORDS
band, throng, multitude, crowd, superintendent, angel, chaperon, guard, sponsor, defender, sentinel, trustee, escort, nurse, shepherd, paladin, champion, supervisor, custodian, patrol
Nearby words
- vigil mass,
- vigilambulism,
- vigilance,
- vigilance committee,
- vigilant,
- vigilantes,
- vigilantism,
- vigilantly,
- vigilius,
- vigintillion
Origin of vigilante
1825–35, Americanism; < Spanish: vigilant
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for vigilante
vigilante
/ (ˌvɪdʒɪˈlæntɪ) /
noun
one of an organized group of citizens who take upon themselves the protection of their district, properties, etc
Also called: vigilance man US a member of a vigilance committee
Word Origin for vigilante
C19: from Spanish, from Latin vigilāre to keep watch
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
vigilante
"member of a vigilance committee," 1856, American English, from Spanish vigilante, literally "watchman," from Latin vigilantem (see vigilance). Vigilant man in same sense is attested from 1824 in a Missouri context. Vigilance committees kept informal rough order on the frontier or in other places where official authority was imperfect.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper