Watchlist

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A compilation typically used to monitor specific people, items, or media, such as a surveillance roster, a collection of entities to be observed, or a list of movies or shows to view in the future
2. A record maintained for keeping track of particular individuals, objects, or entertainment content to either oversee their actions or save them for later viewing
3. A catalog designed for following, observing, or reviewing selected persons, things of interest, or audiovisual works yet to be watched

Etymology: "Watchlist" is a plain compound of "watch" and "list," and its history is about as transparent as English compounds get. "Watch" traces back to Old English "wæccan," meaning to stay awake or keep vigil, while "list" comes from Old English "liste," a strip or border, which later came to mean a roll or catalogue of names. Put together, the pieces describe a catalogue of things kept under careful observation. The more interesting shift is in the sense of "list" itself. Its original notion of an edge or strip of cloth gradually gave way to the idea of a written roll, so that a list became any ordered set of items set down on paper. Joined to "watch," that roll no longer records people or goods for their own sake but marks out what must be kept under eye and attention. The compound therefore carries two older meanings at once: the vigilance of a night guard and the orderly tally of a clerk.

Synonyms: monitoring list, tracking list