Meaning & use
prowler
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Meanings
nouncountable
Someone who moves around quietly near buildings or private property, usually at night, apparently planning to steal or cause trouble.
Grammar: A countable noun, often heard in police reports: a prowler was reported.
Patterns
- a prowler in something
- a prowler outside something
A neighbor called the police after spotting a prowler behind the garage.
The motion light switched on when a prowler crossed the yard.
The dog barked all night because of a prowler.
nouncountableliterary
An animal that moves about stealthily while hunting for prey.
Grammar: Used figuratively for animals, especially big cats.
Patterns
- a nighttime prowler
The leopard is a silent nighttime prowler.
Farmers lost chickens to a fox that was a regular prowler.
Word forms
| plural | prowlers |
|---|
Common combinations
- suspected prowler
- Officers searched the area for a suspected prowler.
- nighttime prowler
- A nighttime prowler was spotted near the school.
- report a prowler
- Residents were asked to report a prowler immediately.
- scare off a prowler
- The security light scared off the prowler.
- prowler alert
- The community sent out a prowler alert by text.
Synonyms and how they differ
- intruder
- An intruder has actually entered a place without permission, whereas a prowler may still be lurking outside.
- trespasser
- Trespasser is a legal term for someone on private land without consent, and does not suggest a criminal plan like prowler does.
- stalker
- Stalker means someone who persistently follows or watches a specific person, while a prowler roams around looking for an opportunity.
- burglar
- A burglar actually breaks in to steal, but a prowler has not necessarily done anything yet.
Word family
Commonly confused: prowler or growler? prowler or prowl?
prowler vs growler
A growler is something that growls, such as a dog, or a jug used for beer. It sounds similar to prowler but means something different.
prowler vs prowl
Prowl is the verb, as in to prowl the streets. The person doing it is a prowler, with the -er ending.
Practice
A neighbor reported seeing a ___ lurking near the parked cars at midnight.
Choose one answer.
A prowler moves around quietly and suspiciously, usually at night. A pedestrian is just someone walking, with no suspicious meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “prowler”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.