drone
1
[ drohn ]
/ droʊn /
noun
the male of the honeybee and other bees, stingless and making no honey.
- an unmanned aircraft or ship that can navigate autonomously, without human control or beyond line of sight: the GPS of a U.S. spy drone.
- (loosely) any unmanned aircraft or ship that is guided remotely: a radio-controlled drone.
a person who lives on the labor of others; parasitic loafer.
a drudge.
Origin of drone
1
before 1000; 1945–50
for def 2a; Middle English
drone, drane, Old English
dran, dron; akin to Old High German
treno, German
Drohne
OTHER WORDS FROM drone
dron·ish, adjectiveWords nearby drone
dromomania,
dromond,
dromos,
dromotropic,
dronabinol,
drone,
drone aircraft,
drongo,
dronklap,
dronkverdriet,
droob
Definition for drone (2 of 2)
drone
2
[ drohn ]
/ droʊn /
verb (used without object), droned, dron·ing.
to make a dull, continued, low, monotonous sound; hum; buzz.
to speak in a monotonous tone.
to proceed in a dull, monotonous manner (usually followed by on): The meeting droned on for hours.
verb (used with object), droned, dron·ing.
to say in a dull, monotonous tone.
noun
Origin of drone
2
1490–1500; see
drone1 and compare Middle English
droun to roar, Icelandic
drynja to bellow, Gothic
drunjus noise
OTHER WORDS FROM drone
dron·er, noun dron·ing·ly, adverbExample sentences from the Web for drone
British Dictionary definitions for drone (1 of 2)
drone
1
/ (drəʊn) /
noun
a male bee in a colony of social bees, whose sole function is to mate with the queen
British
a person who lives off the work of others
a pilotless radio-controlled aircraft
Derived forms of drone
dronish, adjectiveWord Origin for drone
Old English
drān; related to Old High German
treno drone, Gothic
drunjus noise, Greek
tenthrēnē wasp; see
drone ²
British Dictionary definitions for drone (2 of 2)
drone
2
/ (drəʊn) /
verb
(intr)
to make a monotonous low dull sound; buzz or hum
(when intr, often foll by on)
to utter (words) in a monotonous tone, esp to talk without stopping
noun
a monotonous low dull sound
music
- a sustained bass note or chord of unvarying pitch accompanying a melody
- (as modifier)a drone bass
music
one of the single-reed pipes in a set of bagpipes, used for accompanying the melody played on the chanter
a person who speaks in a low monotonous tone
Derived forms of drone
droning, adjective droningly, adverbWord Origin for drone
C16: related to
drone
1 and Middle Dutch
drōnen, German
dröhnen
Scientific definitions for drone
drone
[ drōn ]
A male bee, especially a honeybee whose only function is to fertilize the queen. Drones have no stingers, do no work, and do not produce honey.
Cultural definitions for drone
drone
In military usage, a pilotless aircraft used for reconnaissance and, more recently, for launching aerial attacks.