prowler

noun

prowl·er ˈprau̇-lər

plural prowlers

: a person or animal that prowls

Within a few million years of this major turning point in Earth history, the seas were swarming with myriad forms of life, swimmers, prowlers, sedentary beasts, and burrowers.—

Roger Lewin

especially : a person who moves through an area or place in a quiet and stealthy way in order to commit a crime

There were reports of a prowler in the neighborhood.

He felt uneasy being out there by himself. No one ever walked in Linden Hills, and he didn't want to be mistaken for a prowler. —

Gloria Naylor

… she kills him with a shotgun, claiming that in the dark she mistook him for a prowler. —

Lawrence Eisenberg

Examples of prowler in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

After midnight on July 6, Sonya Massey called 911 to report a prowler. —

Sarah Metz, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2024 The film's narrative structure plays out much like Friday the 13th (1980) as a horror/whodunit with the identity of the prowler remaining a secret until the end of the movie. —

Steven Thrash, EW.com, 19 Oct. 2024 The Los Angeles Police Department records show that officers responded to the Sunset Plaza Drive home 17 times this year, including calls for possible burglars, prowlers and vandalism. —

Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2024 On July 6, former deputy sheriff Sean Grayson responded to a report of a prowler at Massey’s home. —

Brad Parks, CNN, 7 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for prowler