stake·out
ˈstāk-ˌau̇t 
: a surveillance maintained by the police of an area or a person suspected of criminal activity
staked out; staking out; stakes out
1
: to assign (someone, such as a police officer) to an area usually to conduct a surveillance
2
: to maintain a stakeout of
The police are staking out a building where criminal activity is suspected.
3
: to claim as one's own
staked out the biggest bedroom as his
4
: to mark the limits of (an area) with stakes
staking out where the shed will be built
5
: to state (one's opinion) in a very clear and definite way
She staked out her position on the issue in the speech.
Examples of stakeout in a Sentence
Noun
The drug deal was witnessed during a stakeout of the building.
The police were on a stakeout.
Recent Examples on the Web
Mindy Weisberger,
CNN Money,
23 June 2026
His attorneys argue the evidence should be thrown out because FBI agents collected it without a warrant during a 2023 stakeout at Oscar Wilde Restaurant and Bar in Manhattan.
—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
23 June 2026
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
30 June 2026
Platner has staked out a populist message and centered his campaign on the middle class.
—
Joey Garrison,
USA Today,
29 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for stakeout
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Noun
To capture the first-ever images of this unique trap mechanism, the scientists drove thousands of miles to the remote rainforests of Australia’s Cape York Peninsula and conducted nighttime spider stakeouts with multiple cameras and infrared lights.
—
Mindy Weisberger,
CNN Money,
23 June 2026
His attorneys argue the evidence should be thrown out because FBI agents collected it without a warrant during a 2023 stakeout at Oscar Wilde Restaurant and Bar in Manhattan.
—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
23 June 2026
Verb
Media members have been staked out at Madison Square Garden, taking note of what’s being brought into the arena.
—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
30 June 2026
Platner has staked out a populist message and centered his campaign on the middle class.
—
Joey Garrison,
USA Today,
29 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for stakeout
Cite this Entry
“Stakeout.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stakeout. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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