reconnaissance
noun
re·con·nais·sance
ri-ˈkä-nə-zən(t)s 
-sən(t)s
: a preliminary survey to gain information
especially
: an exploratory military survey of enemy territory
Examples of reconnaissance in a Sentence
There are two helicopters available for reconnaissance.
They did a reconnaissance of the enemy's position.
Recent Examples on the Web
The unit soon started making their own drone bombs and by March 2023, Birds of Magyar had grown from a reconnaissance platoon into a strike drone company.
—
David Hambling, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
The commandos’ raid into the heart of Seoul on Jan. 21, 1968 — and North Korea’s seizure of the American reconnaissance ship U.S.S. Pueblo two days later — marked one of the peaks of Cold War tensions on the divided Korean Peninsula.
—Choe Sang-Hun, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2025
But a Ukrainian reconnaissance officer deployed in the area told CNN that, over the last 10 days, Russia’s armed forces became more active again and were bringing forward further manpower and vehicles for future assaults.
—Andrew Carey and Kosta Gak, CNN Money, 9 Apr. 2025
Moon pools can be used to deploy equipment for deep-sea reconnaissance.
—John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reconnaissance
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.
David Hambling, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
The commandos’ raid into the heart of Seoul on Jan. 21, 1968 — and North Korea’s seizure of the American reconnaissance ship U.S.S. Pueblo two days later — marked one of the peaks of Cold War tensions on the divided Korean Peninsula.
—Choe Sang-Hun, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2025
But a Ukrainian reconnaissance officer deployed in the area told CNN that, over the last 10 days, Russia’s armed forces became more active again and were bringing forward further manpower and vehicles for future assaults.
—Andrew Carey and Kosta Gak, CNN Money, 9 Apr. 2025
Moon pools can be used to deploy equipment for deep-sea reconnaissance.
—John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reconnaissance
Cite this Entry
“Reconnaissance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reconnaissance. Accessed 24 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
reconnaissance
noun
re·con·nais·sance
ri-ˈkän-ə-zən(t)s
: a survey (as of enemy territory) to gain information
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share