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prowl

[proul]

Example Sentences Origin

verb (used without object)

to rove or go about stealthily, as in search of prey, something to steal, etc.

verb (used with object)

to rove over or through in search of what may be found: The cat prowled the alleys in search of food.

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Prowl is one of our favorite verbs.

So is absquatulate. Does it mean:

to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.

to flee; abscond:

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noun

act of prowling.

Idiom

on the prowl, in the act of prowling; searching stealthily: The cat is on the prowl for mice.

Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English prollen < ?

Related forms

prowl·ing·ly, adverb

un·prowl·ing, adjective

Synonyms
1. roam. See lurk.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To prowl

Example Sentences

They prowl subway platforms and the parks outside the stations.

Fewer jobs and more people on the prowl equal a seller's market, which drives salaries down.

Lions still occasionally prowl nearby, but their numbers are dropping.

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They prowl subway platforms and the parks outside the stations.

Fewer jobs and more people on the prowl equal a seller's market, which drives salaries down.

Lions still occasionally prowl nearby, but their numbers are dropping.

Whatever the motivation, pirates prowl waters all around the world.

Prowl downtown and you'll find a booming contemporary art scene that has grown amid old warehouses and storefronts.

Communicating with submarines while they prowl the seas has been one of the longstanding challenges for the military.

With bye weeks starting, fantasy teams are on the prowl for help at wide receiver.

We have been on the prowl for a house this year with hopes to buy something next summer.

As the broader markets have improved, lay-offs have ceased and headhunters have once again been on the prowl.

Get a cat's-eye view of one pet's nightly prowl to see how effectively kitty can kill.

Then get up, prowl for insects, and rediscover the wonder you found in them as a child.

The spells of vampire slayers and wolfhunters are no longer proof against the creatures that prowl the shadows.

Special counselors prowl high schools recruiting nontraditional college students.

Other firms that do not count mining as their main business are also on the prowl.

Get a cat's eye view of one pet's nightly prowl to see how effectively kitty can kill.

Con artists prowl the listings, paying sellers with fake cashier's checks and luring buyers to share their credit card numbers.

There is a weird feeling among some couples that single people are on the prowl.

But there are perils when managers can no longer prowl through their own factory.

Leopards prowl among stunted trees in the sparse acacia forests, searching for prey such as addax.

But the military is still on the prowl for substances that might subdue or overwhelm enemy minds.

No one will want a colleague who is always on the prowl for that gotcha moment.

At night, black-eared opossums go on the prowl for bird eggs and other small prey.

Wild cats, including leopards and lynxes, still prowl the mountainsides.

The lions that prowl its plains are known for their abnormally large size, their maneless males, and their unusual prey: humans.

The ultimate detector would prowl inside pipes, pinpoint leaks or potential leaks, and automatically map them.

It is the kind of place where you can prowl ancient ruins in the.

But with emerging markets continuing to surge, local champions will be on the prowl for more acquisitions.

Even though he has brought the script with him, he is still on the prowl for family secrets.

At night plain-clothes security men prowl the townships, breaking up meetings and enforcing an unofficial curfew.

Georgia-where you can prowl gator-haunted jungles, paddle to a lost outpost, or chase a porpoise in the moonlight.

Swollen with cash from fast-growing economies, many emerging-market companies are on the prowl for acquisitions.

Gaunt cats prowl soundlessly up and down the stairs.

They are women who prowl men's fragrance counters when shopping for a scent, heading without bias where their noses lead them.

Predictably, the old guard sees the newbies as semiliterate troglodytes who prowl the viral veld grunting out expletives.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

prowl (praʊl)

—vb (when intr, often foll by around or about)
1.	to move stealthily around (a place) as if in search of prey or plunder

—n
2.	the act of prowling
3.	on the prowl
	a. moving around stealthily
	b. zealously pursuing members of the opposite sex

[C14 prollen, of unknown origin]

'prowler

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

prowl

late 14c., prollen, "move about in search of something," of unknown origin, with no known cognates. Meaning "go stealthily in search of prey" is first recorded 1580s. The noun, in on the prowl, is attested from 1803. Prowler is attested from 1519.

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Related Words

lurk lurch mouse

prog prowl car snoop

Slang

on the prowl

owl-prowl

Matching Quote

"You know I am given to antiquarian and genealogical pursuits. An old family letter is a delight to my eyes. I can prowl in old trunks of letters by the day with undiminished zest."

-Rutherford Birchard Hayes

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