patrol
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
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a person or group of persons assigned to patrol an area, road, etc.
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an automobile, ship, plane, squadron, fleet, etc., assigned to patrol an area.
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Military. a detachment of two or more persons, often a squad or platoon, detailed for reconnaissance or combat.
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the act of patrolling.
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(in the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts) a subdivision of a troop, usually consisting of about eight members.
noun
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the action of going through or around a town, neighbourhood, etc, at regular intervals for purposes of security or observation
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a person or group that carries out such an action
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a military detachment with the mission of security, gathering information, or combat with enemy forces
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a division of a troop of Scouts or Guides
verb
Other Word Forms
- patroller noun
- repatrol verb (used with object)
- unpatrolled adjective
- well-patrolled adjective
Etymology
Origin of patrol
1655–65; < French patrouille (noun), patrouiller (v.) patrol, originally a pawing (noun), to paw (v.) in mud; derivative (with suffixal -ouille ) of patte paw; -r- unexplained
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The area is usually packed with thousands of revelers and police on patrol.
Some urged the ski patrol to accept a deal.
He convened the country’s Defense Council to deploy soldiers and equipment around key facilities as well as boost police patrols around power plants, distribution stations, and control centers.
Heritage wardens who patrol Westminster Square 24 hours a day alerted the police to the graffiti, the spokesperson added.
From BBC
The auditor said his office’s most recent deep dive began with a tip about Thomas Dozler, an Agriculture Department manager whose duties included patrolling Nebraska’s borderland in the F-150.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
