Dictionary

surveillance en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /sɚˈveɪ.ləns/ (General-American)
• (US) audio
• /səˈveɪ.ləns/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /səɾˈveː.ləns/ (India)

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *úp Proto-Indo-European *-er Proto-Indo-European *upér Proto-Italic *super Latin super Latin super- Old French sur- Proto-Indo-European *weǵ-der. Proto-Indo-European *weǵlis Proto-Italic *weglis Latin vigil Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin vigilōder. Latin vigilāre Vulgar Latin *viglāre Old French veillier Old French surveillier French surveiller Proto-Indo-European *-onts Latin -ns Latin -āns Proto-Indo-European *-(i)yós Proto-Italic *-ijos Proto-Italic *-ios Old Latin -ios Latin -ius Latin -ia Latin -āntia Old French -ance Middle French -ance French -ance French surveillancebor. English surveillance Unadapted borrowing from French surveillance (“a watching over, overseeing, supervision”), from surveiller (“to watch, oversee”), from sur- (“over”) + veiller (“to watch”), from Middle French, from Old French veillier (“to stay awake”), from Latin vigilāre (“to be watchful”). More at vigilant.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) Close observation of an individual or group; person or persons under suspicion.
   • The surveillance program includes at least 480 LPRs that scan and record about 16.2 million vehicles per week and stores that data for two years, he wrote in the court filing. 2023 July 24, Chris Eberhart, “NY police used AI to track drivers on highways as attorney questions legality”, in Fox News, archived from the original on 28 Aug 2023:
2. (countable, uncountable) Continuous monitoring of disease occurrence for example.
   • Lady Anne appeared in a week or two to have greatly recovered her appetite, and she talked much of the benefit derived from her native air, in order to gain which, she constantly drove out in Lord Rotheles's carriages, and appeared to derive comfort from her admiration of his beautiful bays; beyond this Helen could not perceive that her airings were useful, as her cough increased exceedingly, and all the visitants at the castle expressed surprise "that she did not place herself under the surveillance of one or other of the great physicians of the metropolis." 1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter LIV, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, pages 66–67:
3. (countable, uncountable) Systematic observation of places and people by visual, aural, electronic, photographic or other means.
   • Cook was making an impassioned plea to end the technology industry’s collection and sale of user data. “This is surveillance,” he continued. 2019 January 31, Ian Bogost, quoting Tim Cook, “Apple’s Empty Grandstanding About Privacy”, in The Atlantic, archived from the original on 13 Feb 2019:
   • The threat of terrorism to the British lies in the overreaction to it of British governments. Each one in turn clicks up the ratchet of surveillance, intrusion and security. Each one diminishes liberty. 2012 December 14, Simon Jenkins, “We mustn't overreact to North Korea boys' toys”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 2, archived from the original on 25 Mar 2025, page 23:
   • And that sight will become more common in the coming years, as the city’s police pursue an ambitious campaign to install thousands of cameras to elevate their surveillance capabilities. 2024 October 5, Jessie Yeung, “Hong Kong plans to install thousands of surveillance cameras. Critics say it’s more proof the city is moving closer to China”, in CNN, archived from the original on 07 Feb 2025:
4. (countable, uncountable) In criminal law, an investigation process by which police gather evidence about crimes, or suspected crime, through continued observation of persons or places.

Forms

Deriveds

cybersurveillance · surveillance camera · mass surveillance · re-surveillance · surveillance approach · dataveillance · video surveillance · serosurveillance · surveillance pricing · xenosurveillance · antisurveillance · surveillance capitalism · countersurveillance · superveillance · geosurveillance · oversurveillance · uberveillance · hypersurveillance · biosurveillance · immunosurveillance · telesurveillance · e-surveillance · technosurveillance

Relateds

wiretapping · sousveillance · stakeout · shadowing · tailing · lookout · surveil

Translations (66)

he מעקב סמוי (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · de Überwachung (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · nb overvåking (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ca vigilància (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · cmn 監測 /监测 (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · fi valvonta (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · bg надзо́р (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · gl vixilancia (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ja 監視 (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · hu megfigyelés (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ka დაკვირვება (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · el παρακολούθηση (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ka ზედამხედველობა (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · pl obserwacja (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · sv bevarande (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · pl monitorowanie (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · sw ulinzi (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ko 감시 (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ml നിരീക്ഷണം (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · fa مراقبت (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · sv bevakning (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · mi tūteitanga (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · nb overvåkning (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · fa پایش (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · pl nadzór (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · oc susvelhança (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · vi sự giám sát (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · id pengawasan (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · af waarneming (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ro supraveghere (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · bg наблюде́ние (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · eu jagoletza (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · tr gözaltı (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · fr fichage (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · mba tagpaniid (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · hi निरीक्षण (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · fa نظارت (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ja サーベイランス (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · it sorveglianza (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · hi पर्यवेक्षण (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ru наблюде́ние (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · da overvågning (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · es vigilancia (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · tr nezaret (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · tr gözetim (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · tl pagmamatyag (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · nb oppsikt (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · km ការឃ្លាំមើល (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · el επιτήρηση (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · nl bewaking (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · pt vigilância (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · tl matyag (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · yi אויגהאַלטונג (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · mr संनिरीक्षण (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · pl inwigilacja (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · uk нагляд (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · fr surveillance (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · id surveilans (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ru надзо́р (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · id pemantauan (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · sv övervakning (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · ka მეთვალყურეობა (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · kl nakkutilliineq (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · cmn 監視 /监视 (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · az nəzarət (observation of individuals or groups of individuals) · cy gwyliadwriaeth (observation of individuals or groups of individuals)