surveillance
- 1Watching a person or group closely, usually because they are suspected of something.
Like keeping a close watch on someone the whole time.
Police kept the house under surveillance for several days.
The guards increased surveillance after the break-in.
Similarobservation, watch, monitoring, scrutiny
Note
- 2Watching places and people closely using cameras, listening devices, and other tools.
Like a security guard who watches every door and window at once.
The army used surveillance to track movements near the border.
Hidden cameras provided surveillance of the building all night.
Similarmonitoring, observation, spying
Note
- 3Watching people or places over time so police can collect proof about a crime.
Like watching a door for days to see who comes and goes.
The police put the warehouse under surveillance after the robbery.
Officers used surveillance to catch the thieves in the act.
Similarobservation, watch
Note
- 4Keeping a constant watch on how often a disease appears in a population.
Like a weather station that checks the sky all day for storms.
Health workers set up surveillance to track the spread of the flu.
Disease surveillance helped doctors spot the outbreak early.
Similarmonitoring
Note
Practice
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Origin
It comes from French surveillance, meaning 'a watching over.' It was built from words meaning 'over' and 'to watch,' going back to a Latin word for being watchful.