patrols

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of patrol.

   Several armed patrols moved through the city after the curfew began.

   Border patrols intercepted the convoy near the mountain pass.

   Note

   The plural belongs to the countable patrol: separate rounds, separate detachments of guards, or, in scouting, the small units of six to eight members within a troop. When patrol names the activity in general, it stays singular. The same spelling is also the present-tense verb, so a phrase like "guard patrols border" can be read either way, and only the rest of the sentence settles it.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of patrol.

   The coast guard patrols these waters around the clock.

   A lone ranger patrols the canyon trails during fire season.

   Note

   Here patrol keeps both of its constructions. Used transitively, it takes the place being guarded as its object: the coast guard patrols these waters. Used intransitively, it stands alone and means making the rounds of a beat or a line of sentries, as in a sentry who patrols until dawn. Both uses cover the same range as the noun, from military outposts to a police officer's district.

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