stake·out
ˈstāk-ˌau̇t 
: a surveillance maintained by the police of an area or a person suspected of criminal activity
staked out; staking out; stakes out
1
: to assign (someone, such as a police officer) to an area usually to conduct a surveillance
2
: to maintain a stakeout of
3
: to claim as one's own
Examples of stakeout in a Sentence
Noun
The drug deal was witnessed during a stakeout of the building.
The police were on a stakeout.
Recent Examples on the Web
Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 July 2024
June 18, 2024 at 6:00 a.m. EDT Send in the cash-counting machines
‘Stop interfering with my constituent’
A stakeout at a steakhouse
Does this ring a bell?
—Salvador Rizzo, Washington Post, 18 June 2024
Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Aug. 2024
Starbuck, who built a large social media following by staking out conservative positions in the nation’s heated debate over social and cultural issues, was endorsed by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., in an unsuccessful bid for a Tennessee congressional seat in 2022.
—Jessica Guynn, USA TODAY, 2 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for stakeout 
Noun
There’s a coda with Axel, Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Taggart (John Ashton) that recreates their famous stakeout in the first film.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 July 2024
June 18, 2024 at 6:00 a.m. EDT Send in the cash-counting machines
‘Stop interfering with my constituent’
A stakeout at a steakhouse
Does this ring a bell?
—Salvador Rizzo, Washington Post, 18 June 2024
Verb
After staking out a dominant position in the bankable Korean film and TV world, Netflix has spent the past two years attempting to leverage the Japanese industry’s latent live-action entertainment potential.
—Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Aug. 2024
Starbuck, who built a large social media following by staking out conservative positions in the nation’s heated debate over social and cultural issues, was endorsed by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., in an unsuccessful bid for a Tennessee congressional seat in 2022.
—Jessica Guynn, USA TODAY, 2 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for stakeout
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stakeout.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near stakeout
Cite this Entry
“Stakeout.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stakeout. Accessed 12 Sep. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share