sentinel

1 of 2

noun

sen·​ti·​nel ˈsent-nəl 

ˈsen-tə-nəl

: sentry

sentinel

2 of 2

verb

sentineled or sentinelled; sentineling or sentinelling

transitive verb

1

: to watch over as a sentinel

2

: to furnish with a sentinel

3

: to post as sentinel

Synonyms

Noun

• custodian
• guard
• guardian
• keeper
• lookout
• minder
• picket
• sentry
• warden
• warder
• watch
• watcher
• watchman

Examples of sentinel in a Sentence

Noun

a lone sentinel kept watch over the fort

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Whole trees—ancient, massive sentinels that might weigh as much as 60 tons—shed into the water, sometimes hundreds at a time. —Boyce Upholt, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 June 2024

The women who didn’t speak sat in the courtroom, playing parts of nurturers and sentinels. —Katie Rogers, New York Times, 7 June 2024

Verb

Think delicate epiphytic orchids curling around the knobby trunks of waving palms; white clapboard cottages with shutters in shades of salmon, sunshine, and seafoam; and a stretch of private beach with a lighthouse sentinel on the horizon. —Caroline Rogers, Southern Living, 30 June 2023

The home's two eponymous wooden lions sit sentinel out front. —Genevieve Redsten, Journal Sentinel, 9 June 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French sentinelle, from Old Italian sentinella, from sentina vigilance, from sentire to perceive, from Latin

First Known Use

Noun

1579, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1593, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing sentinel

• stand sentinel

Kids Definition

sentinel

noun

sen·​ti·​nel

ˈsent-(ə-)nəl

: sentry

Medical Definition

sentinel

adjective

sen·​ti·​nel ˈsent-ᵊn-əl 

: being an individual or part of a population potentially susceptible to an infection or infestation that is being monitored for the appearance or recurrence of the causative pathogen or parasite