drone
1the male of the honeybee and other bees, stingless and making no honey.
an unmanned aircraft or ship that can navigate autonomously, without human control or beyond line of sight: the GPS of a U.S. spy drone.
(loosely) any unmanned aircraft or ship that is guided remotely: a radio-controlled drone.
a person who lives on the labor of others; parasitic loafer.
a drudge.
Origin of drone
1Other words from drone
- dronish, adjective
Other definitions for drone (2 of 2)
to proceed in a dull, monotonous manner (usually followed by on): The meeting droned on for hours.
to say in a dull, monotonous tone.
Music.
a continuous low tone produced by the bass pipes or bass strings of musical instruments.
the pipes (especially of the bagpipe) or strings producing this tone.
a bagpipe equipped with such pipes.
a monotonous low tone; humming or buzzing sound.
a person who speaks in a monotonous tone.
Origin of drone
2Other words from drone
- droner, noun
- dron·ing·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use drone in a sentence
You didn’t flee the drone of weed whackers and leaf blowers just to hear the drone of generators powering your neighbor’s TV so he can watch a marathon of The Office.
Backing up a trailer is really hard, but this $100,000 SUV offers a new solution | Dan Carney | November 19, 2020 | Popular-ScienceThe solar autonomous drone made its first flight, and we expect several flights next year.
Leveraging collective intelligence and AI to benefit society | Jason Sparapani | November 18, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewArmed with a business model that involved using sensors and drones to monitor every stage of the production process, he and two friends entered a pitch competition.
In July, it launched a rover called Perseverance to Mars that’s equipped with a small helicopter drone.
During a year of tumult, space has been a rare bright spot. SpaceX and NASA hope to keep it that way. | Christian Davenport | November 11, 2020 | Washington PostThe pandemic has accelerated a variety of experiments and commercials trial to use drones for deliveries, crop monitoring, firefighting, and a thousand more jobs beyond wowing us by spelling out presidents’ names with LED lights.
Expect to see a lot more drones in the sky in the coming years | Aaron Pressman | November 11, 2020 | Fortune
When I got back at the 17-minute mark, Bibi was still droning on about Iran.
But it was far more than a mere droning on about techniques and hidden luxuries.
Raf Simons Debuts at Christian Dior With Couture Collection | Robin Givhan | July 2, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTHe stopped his droning speeches and adopted a feisty, homey style answering questions on the tours.
Sort of a double life, like this Bob character you were droning on about earlier.
Ever asked an academic about their research only to be subjected to 20 minutes of nonsensical droning?
While they exchanged casual greetings, Braceway lit a cigarette and spun the match, with a droning sound, far out from the porch.
The Winning Clue | James Hay, Jr.Who were these people who strolled among the droning bees of the sandhills or pushed out from the shore in boats?
Mushroom Town | Oliver OnionsEver since we had been at the Hotel Bellevue, we were unconsciously aware of curious droning sounds.
Gardens of the Caribbees, v. 1/2 | Ida May Hill StarrSilence, except for the droning of the insects and the distant rushing of the river.
The Secret Witness | George GibbsThere had been none of them about before, surely, and now their maddening, everlasting droning filled the ear.
The Escape of Mr. Trimm | Irvin S. Cobb
British Dictionary definitions for drone (1 of 2)
/ (drəʊn) /
a male bee in a colony of social bees, whose sole function is to mate with the queen
British a person who lives off the work of others
a pilotless radio-controlled aircraft
Origin of drone
1Derived forms of drone
- dronish, adjective
British Dictionary definitions for drone (2 of 2)
/ (drəʊn) /
(intr) to make a monotonous low dull sound; buzz or hum
(when intr, often foll by on) to utter (words) in a monotonous tone, esp to talk without stopping
a monotonous low dull sound
music
a sustained bass note or chord of unvarying pitch accompanying a melody
(as modifier): a drone bass
music one of the single-reed pipes in a set of bagpipes, used for accompanying the melody played on the chanter
a person who speaks in a low monotonous tone
Origin of drone
2Derived forms of drone
- droning, adjective
- droningly, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for drone
[ drōn ]
A male bee, especially a honeybee whose only function is to fertilize the queen. Drones have no stingers, do no work, and do not produce honey.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for drone
In military usage, a pilotless aircraft used for reconnaissance and, more recently, for launching aerial attacks.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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