patrol car

noun

: a police automobile connected with headquarters by a two-way radio or computer : squad car

Placing an unarmed, compliant juvenile in the back of a patrol car transformed an investigatory stop into an arrest, the 9th Circuit held Aug. 24.

—The National Law Journal

Examples of patrol car in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Trujillo-Ayala and the officer then got into a scuffle, which ended with the officers retreating and taking cover behind their patrol car and Trujillo-Ayala pointing his gun in their direction and running away. —Jason Green, Mercury News, 3 Apr. 2025

After officers arrived, a vehicle rammed into a Cotati patrol car and sped off, police said. —Cameron MacDonald, The Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2025

The officer, with his patrol car’s lights flashing, asked me to step away from the vehicle and wrote me a ticket for running a red light. —Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 27 Mar. 2025

The 43-year-old man behind the wheel of the Charger then bounced off the sweeper, lost control of his car and crashed into the cop, trapping him between the Charger and his own patrol car. —Ellen Moynihan, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1926, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for patrol car

• abattoir
• alcazar
• autocar
• avatar
• belshazzar
• caviar
• caviare
• cinnabar
• commissar
• condylar
• deodar
• handlebar