reconnoitre

See also: reconnoître

English

Alternative forms

reconnoiter (American)
reconnoître (rare)

Etymology

From French reconnoître (obsolete spelling of reconnaître), from Latin recognoscere (“to recognise”). There is also an obsolete 19th-century British English spelling reconnaitre, influenced by the modern French form.

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌɹɛkəˈnɔɪtə/, [ˌɹʷɛkəˈnɔɪ̯tʰə]
(US) IPA^(key): /ˌɹɛkəˈnɔɪtɚ/, [ˌɹˠɛkəˈnɔɪ̯ɾɚ]
Audio (US) (file)

Verb

reconnoitre (third-person singular simple present reconnoitres, present participle reconnoitring, simple past and past participle reconnoitred)

(transitive, intransitive, military) To perform a reconnaissance (of an area; an enemy position); to scout with the aim of gaining information.
Our scout will reconnoitre the path ahead of our troops.
- 1820, [Charles Robert Maturin], Melmoth the Wanderer: A Tale. […], volume I, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Company, and Hurst, Robinson, and Co., […], OCLC 1202978654, page 150:
  Not a drop of rain fell; the clouds went portentously off, like ships of war after reconnoitering a strong fort, to return with added strength and fury.
(obsolete) To recognise.
- 1765, Horace Walpole The Correspondence of Horace Walpole, with George Montagu, Esq
  As to my person, it will not be so easy to reconnoitre it, for I question whether any of it will remain

Synonyms

scout, survey

Translations

perform a reconnaissance — see reconnoiter

Noun

reconnoitre (plural reconnoitres)

An act or instance of reconnoitring.
The pilot reported the findings of his reconnoitre.

Related terms

recon
recce
reconnaissance

Translations

instance of reconnoitring — see reconnoiter

Anagrams

reconnoiter