patrol
verb (used without object)
(of a police officer, soldier, etc.) to pass along a road, beat, etc., or around or through a specified area in order to maintain order and security.
patrolled
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past participleof patrol.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
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past tense formof patrol.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
patrolverb (used without object)(of a police officer, soldier, etc.) to pass along a road, beat, etc., or around or through a specified area in order to maintain order and security.
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.
It had been decades since sharks last patrolled the reef off the coast of Fiji's Naidiri Village, but they returned this year following a community-led effort to protect the fishery and plant thousands of corals.
From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026
Western Germany is also close - but not too close - to the more heavily patrolled beaches of northern France from where migrant boats launch.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
He brought with him perhaps 60,000 soldiers, along with numerous cannons, some of enormous size, to besiege the city; a newly constructed fleet patrolled the Bosporus.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
I drove to my job at a middle school, where more legal observers patrolled outside.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026
Roadblocks were erected, and helicopters patrolled the highways; it was a roadblock in Utah that caught York and Latham.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
