surveil

verb

sur·​veil sər-ˈvāl How to pronounce surveil (audio)
surveilled; surveilling

transitive verb

: to subject to surveillance

Examples of surveil in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
As John and Celina work to keep their cop identities under wraps yet also manage the potentially explosive situation, Lt. Wade Grey (Richard T. Jones) and rookie Miles Penn (Deric Augustine) surveil the action from a van. Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 24 Mar. 2025 What stems behind this is the idea that the central bank should control and surveil how people are spending money to deny the ability to commit crime in the first place. Roger Huang, Forbes, 10 Mar. 2025 China has used facial recognition and algorithms to supercharge its ability to surveil its people and snuff out dissent. David Pierson, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2025 The Hacking Team Leak – An Italian cybersecurity firm that sold hacking tools to law enforcement and intelligence agencies was hacked in 2015, exposing contracts with repressive governments using their tools to surveil dissidents. Emil Sayegh, Forbes, 11 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for surveil

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from surveillance

First Known Use

1884, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of surveil was in 1884

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Surveil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/surveil. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.

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