vicinity

noun

vi·​cin·​i·​ty və-ˈsi-nə-tē 

plural vicinities

1

: a surrounding area or district : neighborhood

2

: neighborhood sense 3b

3

: the quality or state of being near : proximity

Did you know?

Howdy, neighbor! Today we cozy up to vicinity, a word with neighborly origins that was welcomed into English as a French import in the 16th century from Middle French vicinité. It comes ultimately from Latin vicus, meaning "row of houses" or "village," by way of Latin vicinus, meaning "neighboring." Other descendants of vicinus in English include vicinal (a synonym of local) and vicinage, a synonym of vicinity in the sense of "a neighboring or surrounding district." Both of these are formal and rare, but vicinage is notable for giving title to the Vicinage Clause, a segment of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution that entitles an accused person to "an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law."

Synonyms

• backyard
• environs
• neighborhood
• purlieus
• vicinage

Examples of vicinity in a Sentence

there are no hotels in the vicinity of the hospital

the vicinity of the town's only elementary school was one reason why the young couple bought the house

Recent Examples on the Web

The attacks, along with an increase in gang activity around the embassy’s vicinity, have prompted embassy officials to begin the process of evacuating up to 20 diplomatic staff from the capital, another source told CNN on Thursday. —David Culver, CNN, 24 Oct. 2024

Otherwise, the age-old criticism will apply - that Israel has the power to make war but not to make lasting peace in its vicinity, to demolish but not to reconstitute and therefore ends up in endless wars with no permanent security. —Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 25 Sep. 2024

Anything in the immediate vicinity experiences extremely intense electromagnetic fields. —John Timmer, Ars Technica, 24 Sep. 2024

Capitol Hill residents, who had the Jan. 6 riot in their backyard, will see a bigger security perimeter for the certification of votes, which will impact how people move around that day — and even schedules for five schools in the vicinity. —Cuneyt Dil, Axios, 24 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle French vicinité, from Latin vicinitat-, vicinitas, from vicinus neighboring, from vicus row of houses, village; akin to Goth weihs village, Old Church Slavic vĭsĭ, Greek oikos, oikia house

First Known Use

1560, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing vicinity

• in the vicinity of

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

vicinity

noun

vi·​cin·​i·​ty və-ˈsin-ət-ē 

plural vicinities

1

: a surrounding area or district

in the vicinity of her home

2

: an approximate amount, extent, or degree : neighborhood

walks in the vicinity of 20 miles a week