dragnet
noun
drag·net
ˈdrag-ˌnet 
1
a
: a net drawn along the bottom of a body of water
b
: a net used on the ground (as to capture small game)
2
: a network of measures for apprehension (as of criminals)
Examples of dragnet in a Sentence
Nine suspects were caught in the police dragnet.
Recent Examples on the Web
Trump is pulling a military dragnet all across Los Angeles.
—
Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 June 2025
To understand how the deportation dragnet works, TIME joined ICE officers on a pair of morning raids in the New Orleans area.
—Eric Cortellessa, Time, 10 June 2025
The Burmese American woman and her husband are among those with concerns, particularly as there have been several cases of lawful permanent residents and citizens being swept up in the dragnet of Trump’s immigration policies.
—Kimmy Yam, NBC news, 9 June 2025
Homeland Security officials are ramping up enforcement actions in what appears to be a coordinated dragnet testing out new legal levers deployed by Trump’s administration to carry out mass arrests.
—Shelly Bradbury, Denver Post, 30 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for dragnet
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Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 June 2025
To understand how the deportation dragnet works, TIME joined ICE officers on a pair of morning raids in the New Orleans area.
—Eric Cortellessa, Time, 10 June 2025
The Burmese American woman and her husband are among those with concerns, particularly as there have been several cases of lawful permanent residents and citizens being swept up in the dragnet of Trump’s immigration policies.
—Kimmy Yam, NBC news, 9 June 2025
Homeland Security officials are ramping up enforcement actions in what appears to be a coordinated dragnet testing out new legal levers deployed by Trump’s administration to carry out mass arrests.
—Shelly Bradbury, Denver Post, 30 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for dragnet
Cite this Entry
“Dragnet.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dragnet. Accessed 18 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dragnet
noun
drag·net
ˈdrag-ˌnet
1
: a net dragged along the bottom of a body of water
2
: a series of planned actions for catching a criminal
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