reconnaissance
Americannoun
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the act of reconnoitering.
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Military. a search made for useful military information in the field, especially by examining the ground.
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Surveying, Civil Engineering. a general examination or survey of a region, usually followed by a detailed survey.
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Geology. an examination or survey of the general geological characteristics of a region.
noun
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the act of reconnoitring
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the process of obtaining information about the position, activities, resources, etc, of an enemy or potential enemy
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a preliminary inspection of an area of land before an engineering survey is made
Etymology
Origin of reconnaissance
1800–10; < French; Middle French reconoissance recognizance
Explanation
Reconnaissance is checking out a situation before taking action. Often it’s used as a military term, but you could also do reconnaissance on a new employee before you hire her, or a resort before you take a vacation. Reconnaissance is a noun, and it technically means “the act of reconnoitering.” Whoa. Never heard that word before? Reconnoitering is just a fancy way of saying that you’re checking something out — sometimes in a sneaky way. If you like a girl in your Spanish class, you might ask a friend to do some reconnaissance to find out what she’s like. The word comes from the French reconnaître, which means “recognize.”
Vocabulary lists containing reconnaissance
In the Know: Cogn, Conn
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Unbroken
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100 SAT words Beginning with "R"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The team launched a reconnaissance drone, which couldn’t see much through the trees.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026
A joint statement said the new project would see "cutting edge payloads and enabling systems" developed for UUVs which could protect seabed infrastructure, conduct strikes, surveil and do reconnaissance, and conduct logistics operations.
From BBC • May 30, 2026
The man lived in Wimbledon and Badea and Andrei went down to his home on Queensmere Road several times to carry out "reconnaissance", he said.
From BBC • May 29, 2026
Firefighters were able to get a better handle on the situation after two overnight reconnaissance missions into the 15-acre manufacturing complex on the 12000 block of Western Avenue in Garden Grove.
From Los Angeles Times • May 25, 2026
Our reconnaissance planes are tarted up in a lovely salmony-mauve camouflage to match the clouds.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
