as in to guard
to walk or go around or through (an area, building, etc.) especially in order to make sure that it is safe
The squad had orders to patrol the area. The border is patrolled by the army.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of patrol
Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Apr. 2025
Officials at the patrol’s South Lake Tahoe office announced the fatality on Tuesday.
—Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 15 Apr. 2025
Tom Bowman, NPR, 11 Apr. 2025
Volunteer fathers patrol hallways as part of Dads on Duty.
—Jackie Valley, Christian Science Monitor, 9 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for patrol
Noun
The person who was killed hit the patrol vehicle from behind and was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
—Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Apr. 2025
Officials at the patrol’s South Lake Tahoe office announced the fatality on Tuesday.
—Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 15 Apr. 2025
Verb
Caine is a career fighter jet pilot who patrolled the skies above Washington, D.C., immediately after the 9/11 attacks, served in the Middle East during the fight against the Islamic State and then worked at the CIA.
—Tom Bowman, NPR, 11 Apr. 2025
Volunteer fathers patrol hallways as part of Dads on Duty.
—Jackie Valley, Christian Science Monitor, 9 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for patrol
Recent Examples of Synonyms for patrol
Noun
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The snout of a curious whale and the muzzle of a four-legged sentry came oh-so close.—
Alexis Simendinger,
The Hill,
7 Apr. 2025
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In the early hours of April 21, 1775, gale-force winds whipped across the town square, driving the shivering sentries from their posts to the shelter of their beds.—
Andrew Lawler,
Smithsonian Magazine,
2 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Specifically, the Swiss Guard accompanies the pope to public appearances, guards Vatican City and protects the College of Cardinals during a conclave (the election of a new pope), according to The Holy See.—
Greta Cross,
USA Today,
23 Apr. 2025
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He was trained throughout his time as a junior officer to protect and guard the nation’s secrets.—
Tara Suter,
The Hill,
22 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Few, however, deliver on that promise quite as literally as the new Mandarin Oriental Qianmen, Beijing, the brand's second outpost in the Chinese capital.—
Travel + Leisure Editors,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Apr. 2025
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But the inclusion of these uninhabited volcanic outposts raised eyebrows.—
Arick Wierson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Apr. 2025
Verb
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The push to help more than half-a-million Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans is part of a broader legal effort to protect nationals from Ukraine, Afghanistan and other countries who are here legally.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2025
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The Arkansas Senate on Wednesday night approved a bill that its supporters maintain would protect Arkansans from religious discrimination and its opponents counter targets LGBTQ+ people.—
Josh Snyder,
Arkansas Online,
10 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Several picket signs were decorated with messaging against Musk and President Donald Trump.—
Kendrick Calfee,
Kansas City Star,
29 Mar. 2025
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Tuesday’s demonstration served as a precursor to an informational picket scheduled for Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. outside the California Department of Human Resources.—
William Melhado,
Sacramento Bee,
12 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Commando (1987) is about a strangely hilarious killing machine who dispatches dozens of less talented commandos to hell to rescue his daughter, played by sitcom star Alyssa Milano.—
John DeVore,
Rolling Stone,
31 Mar. 2025
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In January, Yale Hillel hosted a talk by Naftali Bennett, a former Israeli army commando, defense minister and prime minister, who was once considered a protégé of Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s current prime minister.—
Anemona Hartocollis,
New York Times,
25 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Many of them have been living and working in South Florida after being sponsored by relatives to come to the United States to apply for asylum or other protections instead of trying to get in through the U.S.-Mexico border, where a migrant crisis erupted during the Biden administration’s watch.—
Jay Weaver,
Miami Herald,
15 Apr. 2025
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Under Griffin’s watch, the Pelicans acquired Trey Murphy in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft and followed that up by using first-round picks on Dyson Daniels in 2022, Jordan Hawkins in 2023 and Yves Missi in 2024.—
William Guillory,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The north was expected to be America’s rear guard, a place where values like democracy and women’s rights might have taken hold.—
Azam Ahmed,
New York Times,
24 Dec. 2024
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And assassins from a coalition of all the local indigenous tribes — out for blood over the murder of Jimmy the Creek, one of their own, last episode — slit the throats of Ming’s rear guard.—
Sean T. Collins,
Vulture,
10 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Patrol.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/patrol. Accessed 27 Apr. 2025.
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