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
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Iran also reportedly cooperates with criminal groups in Europe, working with them to surveil Israeli targets in France, Germany and the U.K. U.S. nationals have also been targeted directly. Nakissa Jahanbani, The Conversation, 20 June 2025 Others described judges attempting to snoop or surveil them. Carrie Johnson, NPR, 9 June 2025 The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force dispatched ships and aircraft to surveil and gather intelligence on the Chinese naval task group, while Japanese fighter aircraft were scrambled in response to the flight operations of the Liaoning's fighter jets, the Japan Joint Staff said. Ryan Chan, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 May 2025 The company behind it could be quietly tied to China, where the government maintains the ability to surveil all user data, according to a report published Thursday by the Technology Transparency Project. Kevin Collier, NBC news, 12 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for surveil

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

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Surveil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surveil. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.

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