Meaning & use

drone

noun·Everyday

An unmanned aircraft controlled remotely or by onboard computers, or a continuous low humming sound.

See it in a sentence

The farmer used a drone to survey the fields from above.

The steady drone of the air conditioner filled the quiet room.

A note on using this word

Drone also refers to a male bee that does no work but mates with the queen, the source of its figurative sense of an idle worker.

Words with a similar meaning

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Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Another way to use it

2. verb

To make a continuous, low humming sound, or to speak in a monotonous tone.

The professor droned on for nearly an hour about tax law.

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