provost guard

American

[proh-voh] / ˈproʊ voʊ /

noun

a detachment of soldiers assigned to police duties under the provost marshal.

provost guard British

/ prəˈvəʊ /

noun

(esp in the US) a detachment under command of the provost marshal

"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

Etymology

Origin of provost guard

An Americanism dating back to 1770–80

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.

You understand, however, that the guns used by the provost guard on occasions like that are always loaded by men who have been appointed for that special purpose.

From Project Gutenberg

In the course of an hour we were under way, and without any molestation from the provost guards.

From Project Gutenberg

The whole Division then moved to the vicinity of Frederick City, our Regiment being detailed in the city as provost guard.

From Project Gutenberg

They were the provost guard of the city, with their head-quarters in the citadel.

From Project Gutenberg

The evening of the seventh day some of the provost guard took us to the railroad depot en route for Columbia.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023