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surveillance

noun

sər-ˈvā-lən(t)s How to pronounce surveillance (audio)
Definition of surveillancenext
1
as in stewardship
the duty or function of watching or guarding for the sake of proper direction or control a neutral country charged with the surveillance of the post-war rebuilding effort

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in watch
an act or period of watching for signs of activity, danger, or opportunity government surveillance of suspected terrorists

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of surveillance Iranian authorities continue to enforce compulsory-veiling rules, including through prosecutions, business closures, vehicle impoundments and surveillance. — Pegah Banihashemi, Chicago Tribune, 18 Sep. 2026 From positions stretching from Japan to the Philippines, these weapons could threaten Chinese ships approaching key waterways while allied intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems provide targeting information. — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2026 Investigators also reviewed surveillance footage from the weight room. — Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 18 Sep. 2026 The source of the facial recognition was a fake ID used by a female suspect who was captured on surveillance footage in incidents involving multiple Fargo-area banks, according to the complaint. — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for surveillance
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surveillance
  1. stewardship
  2. watch
  3. supervision
  4. lookout
  5. oversight
  6. management
  7. control
  8. policing
Noun
  • Trump’s reaction today to Cooper’s decision—both online and before the board—underscores the bargain that has defined his stewardship of the Kennedy Center.
    — Janay Kingsberry, The Atlantic, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Many invest millions of dollars into upgrades, infrastructure improvements, and long-term stewardship of their properties.
    — Jeff Cook, New York Daily News, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of stewardship
Noun
  • The famed artist, known for his vibrant, playful sculptures of inflatable pups (one of which fetched over $58 million at auction in 2013), has teamed up with Hublot to turn his creations into a collection of watches.
    — Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Citi reiterates Meta as buy Citi added a positive catalyst watch on stock ahead of its Meta Connect conference.
    — Michael Bloom, CNBC, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of watch
Noun
  • Leaders need to know who is responsible for clinical validation, bias assessment, regulatory compliance, vendor oversight, explainability, human supervision and ongoing performance monitoring.
    — Anri Amir David, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Tesla’s own documentation states that Autopilot and Full Self-Driving require active driver supervision and are not autonomous driving systems.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of supervision
Noun
  • Steps lead up to the lookout bar, an elevated speakeasy with panoramic views that half of Vienna is queuing up for right now.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The couple hires Caleb as a lookout and braves his sullen outbursts, learning more about the lonely, angry youth as the murders draw nearer.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, IndieWire, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of lookout
Noun
  • The president was pushing back against calls by tech leaders such as Anthropic's Dario Amodei, OpenAI's Sam Altman and SpaceXAI's Elon Musk to have greater government oversight of AI.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Those that treat it as a workflow, training-data and clinician-oversight problem are better positioned to get durable value out of it while still managing the residual risk.
    — Pat Williams, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of oversight
Noun
  • That additional signal could allow existing battery management systems to estimate state of charge more accurately as a battery operates.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Put simply, Chinese EVs are just better than a lot of the competition, says Howard Yu, a professor of management and innovation at IMD Business School and codirector of the Future Readiness program, which evaluates global car manufacturers.
    — Sam Forsdick, Fortune, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of management
Noun
  • Robert Mugabe, longtime strongman of Zimbabwe, printed money to ensure his party kept control of the country and to finance the nation's deficits.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Democrats have seized upon AI safety to boost their chances of retaking congressional control in the midterms.
    — Lia Russell, Sacbee.com, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of control
Noun
  • Local police chiefs and sheriffs and their national organizations need to speak up and be willing to say that federal immigration enforcement cannot be allowed to undermine local policing.
    — Karl W. Bickel, Baltimore Sun, 14 Sep. 2026
  • In other words, institutions created for external war, border enforcement, and domestic policing have now become components of a punitive system against immigrants who may not even have a criminal record.
    — Daniel Benjamin, Foreign Affairs, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of policing

Browse Nearby Words

surveil
surveillance
surveillances
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Surveillance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surveillance. Accessed 22 Sep. 2026.

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