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
Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 16 May 2026
The highway patrol identified the driver as Naol Gemeda, 31, of Olathe.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 16 May 2026
Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 17 May 2026
The program that will follow GSSAP, known as RG-XX or Andromeda, will use cheaper, refuelable satellites to patrol geosynchronous orbit.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 15 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for patrol
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Noun
Traditionally, maintaining vigilance in places like the South China Sea requires constant Naval patrols, which are expensive.
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 16 May 2026
The highway patrol identified the driver as Naol Gemeda, 31, of Olathe.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 16 May 2026
Verb
The Polish soldiers patrolling the frontier do not describe their mission in grand geopolitical terms.
—Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 17 May 2026
The program that will follow GSSAP, known as RG-XX or Andromeda, will use cheaper, refuelable satellites to patrol geosynchronous orbit.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 15 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 20 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
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