dragnet

noun

drag·net | \ ˈdrag-ˌnet

How to pronounce dragnet (audio)

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Definition of dragnet

1a : 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

In recent weeks, the demonstrators have used the lasers to keep pace with a widening dragnet by authorities. — Jennifer Hassan, Washington Post, "Hong Kong protesters are using lasers to distract and confuse. Police are shining lights right back.," 1 Aug. 2019 One of those caught in the dragnet was Mohamad Hamda, a 26-year-old who fled Damascus with his family last year, paying smugglers to make his way to Istanbul. — Umar Farooq, Los Angeles Times, "Anti-refugee sentiment grows in Turkey as government begins to send Syrians back," 25 July 2019 El Cirujano escaped the police dragnet and has yet to be caught. — Danny Gold, SI.com, "The Broken Case of David Ortiz," 23 July 2019 To save her from the Nazi dragnet, her parents gave her up at the age of 4 months. — Bart Barnes, BostonGlobe.com, "Anita Epstein, who chronicled her infancy during the Holocaust, dies at 76," 13 July 2019 To save her from the Nazi dragnet, her parents gave her up at the age of 4 months. — Bart Barnes, Washington Post, "Anita Epstein, who chronicled her infancy during the Holocaust, dies at 76," 9 July 2019 On Friday morning, the chief — along with Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan and other officials — sought to calm fears and announced a massive door-to-door dragnet for information and other victims. — Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, "Person of interest in Detroit serial killings charged in sexual assault," 10 June 2019 Cawthorn slipped away from a police dragnet on Memorial Day, using his dirt bike to flee as officers approached. — Jessica Anderson, baltimoresun.com, "Feds indict Baltimore man on drug charges; police say he is tied to violent group of dealers," 6 June 2019 When paired with a network of larger, more sensitive devices, both mobile and at fixed points around a city, this creates a crowdsourced dragnet for thwarting possible biological, chemical, explosive, or nuclear attack. — Dan Dubno, Popular Mechanics, "This Tiny Device Can Detect Nuclear Armageddon," 25 Apr. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dragnet.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

12 Aug 2019

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Time Traveler for dragnet

The first known use of dragnet was circa 1541

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More Definitions for dragnet

dragnet

noun

English Language Learners Definition of dragnet

: a series of actions that are done by the police in order to catch criminals

: a net that is pulled along the bottom of a river, lake, pond, etc., to search for or collect something

See the full definition for dragnet in the English Language Learners Dictionary

dragnet

noun

drag·net | \ ˈdrag-ˌnet

\

Kids Definition of dragnet

1 : a net that is pulled along the bottom of a body of water in order to catch or find something

2 : a series of actions by police for catching a criminal

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WORD OF THE DAY

misnomer

a wrong name or inappropriate designation

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