1
a
: the action of traversing a district or beat or of going the rounds along a chain of guards for observation or the maintenance of security
b
: the person performing such an action
c
: a unit of persons or vehicles employed for reconnaissance, security, or combat
2
: a subdivision of a Boy Scout troop or Girl Scout troop
patrolled; patrolling
: to carry out a patrol
: to carry out a patrol of
patroller
noun
Examples of patrol in a Sentence
Noun
The guard makes a patrol of the building every hour.
Soldiers are on patrol along the border.
Army patrols combed the area.
Verb
The squad had orders to patrol the area.
The border is patrolled by the army.
Recent Examples on the Web
Patrick Smith, NBC News, 26 Apr. 2024
On Friday, Miami-Dade County police marine patrol officers stopped a 60-foot yacht off Key Biscayne that had 31 people from Haiti stowed below the deck, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which also participated in the interception of the boat.
—David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 25 Apr. 2024
During the wave of Black Lives Matter protests, the Board of Education removed officers from campus — limiting them to patrols, investigations and crisis response — but these parents are demanding their return to on-campus duties.
—Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2024
The campus is closed today, events have been canceled, and police patrols have been increased.
—Becca Longmire, Peoplemag, 22 Apr. 2024
In the filmmaker’s vision, American life exists only because of armed patrols.
—Eisa Nefertari Ulen, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Apr. 2024
According to machine translations of stories at NHK and the Asahi Shimbun, the Kochi Prefectural police arrested 36-year-old Yoshihiro Yamakawa on April 9th after cyber patrol officers caught him selling the characters online.
—Amrita Khalid, The Verge, 12 Apr. 2024
Chief John Modlin, the chief patrol agent for the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector, sat down with The Briefing to talk about the increase in migrant crossings along the Arizona border.
—Rafael Carranza, The Arizona Republic, 8 Apr. 2024
Tada said the department has received calls about criminal activity and for medical assistance on hiking trails or in open space preserves that are usually inaccessible to the department’s patrol vehicles, which is where the UTV would come in handy.
—Isha Trivedi, The Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2024
Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 13 Apr. 2024
Somehow, the music matches the nervous, revolutionary energy on screen: the unlikely sight of an angry Brooklyn patrolled by troops, hundreds of people clashing in the streets, a suicide bomber putting an abrupt punctuation to it all.
—Joshua Rothkopf, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
In the meantime, this flow of Russian resources boosts China’s energy and food security while decreasing its dependency on vulnerable maritime routes such as the Malaka Strait, which is patrolled by the U.S. Navy.
—Alexander Gabuev, Foreign Affairs, 9 Apr. 2024
The route through Lebanon, Mr. Levitt said, is more difficult, particularly since the war in Gaza started, because the border on which Hezbollah operates is more heavily patrolled by both the Israeli military and U.N. peacekeepers.
—Eric Schmitt, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024
The shooting occurred at the Martini Bar, a nightclub in CityPlace Doral, according to CNN affiliate WPLG, who reported that officers were already patrolling the area as part of the late-night security detail.
—Sarah Dewberry, CNN, 6 Apr. 2024
Governor Black had proposed hiring more officers to patrol the city's mass transit, but five months into his job at the end of 2022 he was terminated.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 4 Apr. 2024
Albuquerque police were alerted to a shoplifting incident at a local Walgreens late last month while patrolling the area.
—USA TODAY, 2 Apr. 2024
Four different Israeli security agencies are patrolling the outer compound entrances.
—Taylor Luck, The Christian Science Monitor, 21 Mar. 2024
Noun
Gate access is still restricted to Columbia University ID holders, and patrols will be increased for enhanced security on the campus perimeter.
—Patrick Smith, NBC News, 26 Apr. 2024
On Friday, Miami-Dade County police marine patrol officers stopped a 60-foot yacht off Key Biscayne that had 31 people from Haiti stowed below the deck, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which also participated in the interception of the boat.
—David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 25 Apr. 2024
During the wave of Black Lives Matter protests, the Board of Education removed officers from campus — limiting them to patrols, investigations and crisis response — but these parents are demanding their return to on-campus duties.
—Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2024
The campus is closed today, events have been canceled, and police patrols have been increased.
—Becca Longmire, Peoplemag, 22 Apr. 2024
In the filmmaker’s vision, American life exists only because of armed patrols.
—Eisa Nefertari Ulen, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Apr. 2024
According to machine translations of stories at NHK and the Asahi Shimbun, the Kochi Prefectural police arrested 36-year-old Yoshihiro Yamakawa on April 9th after cyber patrol officers caught him selling the characters online.
—Amrita Khalid, The Verge, 12 Apr. 2024
Chief John Modlin, the chief patrol agent for the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector, sat down with The Briefing to talk about the increase in migrant crossings along the Arizona border.
—Rafael Carranza, The Arizona Republic, 8 Apr. 2024
Tada said the department has received calls about criminal activity and for medical assistance on hiking trails or in open space preserves that are usually inaccessible to the department’s patrol vehicles, which is where the UTV would come in handy.
—Isha Trivedi, The Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2024
Verb
The man, whose name was not released, was found unresponsive by a BART officer patrolling a train car about 8 p.m. at the Walnut Creek station, the transit agency said.
—Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 13 Apr. 2024
Somehow, the music matches the nervous, revolutionary energy on screen: the unlikely sight of an angry Brooklyn patrolled by troops, hundreds of people clashing in the streets, a suicide bomber putting an abrupt punctuation to it all.
—Joshua Rothkopf, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
In the meantime, this flow of Russian resources boosts China’s energy and food security while decreasing its dependency on vulnerable maritime routes such as the Malaka Strait, which is patrolled by the U.S. Navy.
—Alexander Gabuev, Foreign Affairs, 9 Apr. 2024
The route through Lebanon, Mr. Levitt said, is more difficult, particularly since the war in Gaza started, because the border on which Hezbollah operates is more heavily patrolled by both the Israeli military and U.N. peacekeepers.
—Eric Schmitt, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024
The shooting occurred at the Martini Bar, a nightclub in CityPlace Doral, according to CNN affiliate WPLG, who reported that officers were already patrolling the area as part of the late-night security detail.
—Sarah Dewberry, CNN, 6 Apr. 2024
Governor Black had proposed hiring more officers to patrol the city's mass transit, but five months into his job at the end of 2022 he was terminated.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 4 Apr. 2024
Albuquerque police were alerted to a shoplifting incident at a local Walgreens late last month while patrolling the area.
—USA TODAY, 2 Apr. 2024
Four different Israeli security agencies are patrolling the outer compound entrances.
—Taylor Luck, The Christian Science Monitor, 21 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'patrol.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near patrol
Cite this Entry
“Patrol.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/patrol. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
patrol
1 of 2 noun
pa·trol
pə-ˈtrōl 
1
a
: the action of going the rounds of an area for observation or guard
b
: the person or group doing the patrolling
2
: a part of a Boy Scout or Girl Scout troop
patrol
2 of 2 verb
patrolled; patrolling
: to carry out a patrol or a patrol of
patroller
noun
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