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
Jt Moodee Lockman, CBS News, 9 May 2026
But a confidential internal audit later seemed to suggest body camera misuse was more widespread, finding similar violations among patrol officers in three other divisions, including 77th Street.
—Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2026
Larry Seward, CBS News, 9 May 2026
The wind- and solar-powered vessels, built by Saildrone, will patrol more than 90,000 square miles of interconnected waterways and international shipping routes.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 7 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for patrol
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
According to charging documents obtained by WJZ, Robinson was seen by a patrol officer looking into the windows of apartment units.
—Jt Moodee Lockman, CBS News, 9 May 2026
But a confidential internal audit later seemed to suggest body camera misuse was more widespread, finding similar violations among patrol officers in three other divisions, including 77th Street.
—Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2026
Verb
In addition, Miami police patrol the area, and Miami-Dade County leaders increased marine littering fines three years ago.
—Larry Seward, CBS News, 9 May 2026
The wind- and solar-powered vessels, built by Saildrone, will patrol more than 90,000 square miles of interconnected waterways and international shipping routes.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 7 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for patrol
Cite this Entry
“Patrol.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/patrol. Accessed 11 May. 2026.
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
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
