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Definition of surveillance noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

surveillance

noun
 
 
/sɜːˈveɪləns/
 
/sɜːrˈveɪləns/
[uncountable]
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  1. the act of carefully watching a person suspected of a crime or a place where a crime may be committed synonym observation
    • The police are keeping the suspects under constant surveillance.
    • surveillance cameras/equipment
    Extra Examples
    • The suspects are under police surveillance.
    • The images were covertly captured on surveillance tape.
    Topics War and conflictc1, Crime and punishmentc1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • close
    • constant
    • regular
    • …
    verb + surveillance
    • be under
    • keep somebody/​something under
    • place somebody/​something under
    • …
    surveillance + noun
    • camera
    • device
    • equipment
    • …
    See full entry
    Word Originearly 19th cent.: from French, from sur- ‘over’ + veiller ‘watch’ (from Latin vigilare ‘keep watch’).
See surveillance in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee surveillance in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
Check pronunciation: surveillance

Nearby words

trait
noun
 
 
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