surveil

verb

sur·​veil sər-ˈvāl How to pronounce surveil (audio)
surveilled; surveilling

transitive verb

: to subject to surveillance

Examples of surveil in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The potential ban comes amid growing security concerns that China could use the app to surveil American citizens and access their data without their knowledge — a concern TikTok has previously denied. Bailey Richards, Peoplemag, 2 June 2024 But the administration immediately limited the balloon’s ability to surveil sensitive sites and made plans to shoot it down safely while maximizing opportunities to collect information about the technology and what China was doing with it. Rush Doshi, Foreign Affairs, 30 May 2024 When the pandemic erupted and forced much of the industry to log on remotely, authorities initially loosened rules requiring firms to constantly surveil staff. Gillian Tan, Fortune, 22 May 2024 Other security measures by police include more than 20 cameras used by the Real Time Crime Unit to surveil the area. Nicole Lopez, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Mar. 2024 See all Example Sentences for surveil 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'surveil.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from surveillance

First Known Use

1884, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of surveil was in 1884

Dictionary Entries Near surveil

Cite this Entry

“Surveil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surveil. Accessed 17 Jun. 2024.

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