vigilance man
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: - A member of a vigilance committee: A person who belongs to a group of citizens organized to maintain order and pursue criminals, typically in the absence of regular law enforcement.
Usage
The term "vigilance man" is a historical and specific term. It is used to refer to an individual participating in the activities of a vigilance committee. These committees were often formed in frontier communities or during times of perceived lawlessness.
Examples
- Noun:
- The town sheriff was corrupt, so the citizens elected a vigilance man to patrol the streets at night.
- As a vigilance man, his duty was to protect the settlement from bandits.
Advanced Usage
- The term is almost exclusively used in a historical context, particularly regarding the American Old West or other periods of frontier justice.
- It carries connotations of extra-legal authority, citizen action, and sometimes vigilantism.
Variants and Related Words
- Vigilante (noun): A person who undertakes law enforcement without legal authority. While similar, "vigilante" is a more general and modern term, whereas "vigilance man" specifically denotes membership in an organized committee.
- Vigilance committee (noun): The organized group to which a vigilance man belongs.
Synonyms
- Vigilante
- Citizen enforcer (descriptive phrase)
- Regulator (historical context, e.g., South Carolina Regulators)
Notes on Meaning
- The primary and essentially only meaning of "vigilance man" is as defined above. It does not have other distinct meanings in common usage.
Noun
- member of a vigilance committee