drone


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drone 1

(drōn)
n.
1. A male bee, especially a honeybee, that is characteristically stingless, performs no work, and produces no honey. Its only function is to mate with the queen bee.
2. An idle person who lives off others; a loafer.
3. A person who does tedious or menial work; a drudge: "undervalued drones who labored in obscurity" (Caroline Bates).
4. A remotely controlled or autonomous aircraft with no pilot on board. Also called unmanned aircraft system.
[Middle English, from Old English drān. Sense 4, originally 1930s US naval jargon introduced by Commander (later Rear Admiral) Delmer Fahrney (1898-1984), in reference to the fact that such pilotless aircraft, at first used for target practice, were controlled by an operator on the ground or in a mother ship or aircraft, likened to a queen bee.]

drone 2

(drōn)
v. droned, dron·ing, drones
v.intr.
1. To make a continuous low dull humming sound: "Somewhere an electric fan droned without end" (William Styron).
2. To speak in a monotonous tone: The lecturer droned on for hours.
3. To pass or act in a monotonous way.
v.tr.
To utter in a monotonous low tone: "The mosquitoes droned their angry chant" (W. Somerset Maugham).
n.
1. A continuous low humming or buzzing sound.
2. Music
a. Any of the pipes of a bagpipe that lack finger holes and produce a single tone.
b. A long sustained tone.
c. Any of various instruments that produce only a constant pitch.
[From drone (from the bee's humming sound).]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

drone

(drəʊn)
n
1. (Zoology) a male bee in a colony of social bees, whose sole function is to mate with the queen
2. Brit a person who lives off the work of others
3. (Aeronautics) a pilotless radio-controlled aircraft
[Old English drān; related to Old High German treno drone, Gothic drunjus noise, Greek tenthrēnē wasp; see drone2]
ˈdronish adj

drone

(drəʊn)
vb
1. (intr) to make a monotonous low dull sound; buzz or hum
2. (when: intr, often foll by on) to utter (words) in a monotonous tone, esp to talk without stopping
n
3. a monotonous low dull sound
4. (Music, other) music
a. a sustained bass note or chord of unvarying pitch accompanying a melody
b. (as modifier): a drone bass.
5. (Instruments) music one of the single-reed pipes in a set of bagpipes, used for accompanying the melody played on the chanter
6. a person who speaks in a low monotonous tone
[C16: related to drone1 and Middle Dutch drōnen, German dröhnen]
ˈdroning adj
ˈdroningly adv
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

drone1

(droʊn)

n.
1. the male of the honeybee and other bees that is stingless and makes no honey.
2. a craft operated by remote control, esp. a pilotless airplane guided by radio signals.
3. a person who lives on the labor of others; parasitic loafer.
4. a drudge.
[before 1000; Middle English drone, drane, Old English dran, dron]
dron′ish, adj.

drone2

(droʊn)

v. droned, dron•ing,
n. v.i.
1. to make a continued, low, monotonous sound; hum; buzz.
2. to speak in a monotonous tone.
3. to proceed in a dull, monotonous manner (usu. fol. by on).
v.t.
4. to say in a dull, monotonous tone.
n.
5.
a. a musical instrument or one of its parts producing a continuous low tone, esp. a bagpipe.
6. a monotonous low tone; humming or buzzing sound.
[1490–1500; see drone 1 and compare Middle English droun to roar, Icelandic drynja to bellow, Gothic drunjus noise]
dron′er, n.
dron′ing•ly, adv.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

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.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

drone

A land, sea, or air vehicle that is remotely or automatically controlled. See also remotely piloted vehicle; unmanned aerial vehicle.
Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. US Department of Defense 2005.

drone


Past participle: droned
Gerund: droning

Imperative
drone
drone
Present
I drone
you drone
he/she/it drones
we drone
you drone
they drone
Preterite
I droned
you droned
he/she/it droned
we droned
you droned
they droned
Present Continuous
I am droning
you are droning
he/she/it is droning
we are droning
you are droning
they are droning
Present Perfect
I have droned
you have droned
he/she/it has droned
we have droned
you have droned
they have droned
Past Continuous
I was droning
you were droning
he/she/it was droning
we were droning
you were droning
they were droning
Past Perfect
I had droned
you had droned
he/she/it had droned
we had droned
you had droned
they had droned
Future
I will drone
you will drone
he/she/it will drone
we will drone
you will drone
they will drone
Future Perfect
I will have droned
you will have droned
he/she/it will have droned
we will have droned
you will have droned
they will have droned
Future Continuous
I will be droning
you will be droning
he/she/it will be droning
we will be droning
you will be droning
they will be droning
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been droning
you have been droning
he/she/it has been droning
we have been droning
you have been droning
they have been droning
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been droning
you will have been droning
he/she/it will have been droning
we will have been droning
you will have been droning
they will have been droning
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been droning
you had been droning
he/she/it had been droning
we had been droning
you had been droning
they had been droning
Conditional
I would drone
you would drone
he/she/it would drone
we would drone
you would drone
they would drone
Past Conditional
I would have droned
you would have droned
he/she/it would have droned
we would have droned
you would have droned
they would have droned
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun 1. [画像:drone - stingless male bee in a colony of social bees (especially honeybees) whose sole function is to mate with the queen]drone - stingless male bee in a colony of social bees (especially honeybees) whose sole function is to mate with the queen
bee - any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species
2. drone - an unchanging intonation
intonation, pitch contour, modulation - rise and fall of the voice pitch
3. [画像:drone - someone who takes more time than necessary]drone - someone who takes more time than necessary; someone who lags behind
do-nothing, idler, layabout, loafer, bum - person who does no work; "a lazy bum"
lingerer, loiterer - someone who lingers aimlessly in or about a place
slowcoach, slowpoke, stick-in-the-mud, plodder - someone who moves slowly; "in England they call a slowpoke a slowcoach"
potterer, putterer - a person who putters about
straggler, strayer - someone who strays or falls behind
4. drone - an aircraft without a pilot that is operated by remote control
heavier-than-air craft - a non-buoyant aircraft that requires a source of power to hold it aloft and to propel it
5. drone - a pipe of the bagpipe that is tuned to produce a single continuous tone
bagpipe - a tubular wind instrument; the player blows air into a bag and squeezes it out through the drone
pipe - a tubular wind instrument
Verb 1. drone - make a monotonous low dull sound; "The harmonium was droning on"
sound, go - make a certain noise or sound; "She went `Mmmmm'"; "The gun went `bang'"
2. drone - talk in a monotonous voice
mouth, speak, talk, verbalise, verbalize, utter - express in speech; "She talks a lot of nonsense"; "This depressed patient does not verbalize"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

drone

1
noun parasite, skiver (Brit. slang), idler, lounger, piker (Austral. & N.Z. slang), leech, loafer, couch potato (slang), scrounger (informal), sponger (informal), sluggard, bludger (Austral. & N.Z. informal) A few are dim-witted drones, but most are talented.

drone

2
verb
1. hum, buzz, vibrate, purr, whirr, thrum An invisible plane drones through the night sky.
noun
1. hum, buzz, purr, vibration, whirr, whirring, thrum the constant drone of the motorway
drone on speak monotonously, drawl, chant, spout, intone, talk interminably Her voice droned on.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

drone 1

noun
A self-indulgent person who spends time avoiding work or other useful activity:
Slang: slouch.

drone 2

verb
To make a continuous low-pitched droning sound:
noun
A continuous low-pitched droning sound:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
ذَكَر النَّحِلشَخْص كَسولطَنينيَتَكَلَّمُ بِصَوْتٍ مُمِليَطِنُّ
бръмчатъртей
trubecvrčethučeníhučetlenoch
brummedagdriverdronesummen
huminakuhnurilennokkisurinatyöläinen
döngésherehere méhmonoton hangon elmondsemmittevõ
susurro
drunur; suîkarlbÿflugaletingi, iîjuleysingisuîa; drynjatala tilbreytingarlaust
bambėtigaustimonotoniškai kalbėtitranas
dūkoņadūkšanadūktliekēdismonotoni runāt
bourdondar drone
brzęczenie samolot bezzałogowy
trântor
trúd
trot
drönare
asalak erkek arımonoton bir sesle konuşmaktembel kimseuğuldamak

drone

[drəʊn]
A. N
1. (= male bee) → zángano m
2. (= noise) [of bees, engine] → zumbido m; [of voice] → tono m monótono
3. (= sponger) → parásito/a m/f
B. VI [bee, engine, aircraft] → zumbar ; [voice, person] (also drone on) → hablar monótonamente
he droned on and on → hablaba y hablaba en tono monótono
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

drone

[ˈdrəʊn]
vi
[bee] → bourdonner
[engine] → ronronner
(also drone on) [person] → parler d'une voix monocorde
n
(= noise) [insect] → bourdonnement m; [plane, traffic] → ronronnement m
(= male bee) → faux-bourdon m
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

drone

n
(= bee, fig) → Drohne f
(= sound, of bees) → Summen nt; (of engine, aircraft) → Brummen nt
(= monotonous way of speaking) → monotone Stimme
(Mus, = bass voice part) → Bass m; (of bagpipes) → Brummer m; (sound) → Bordun(ton) m
(Aviat, = robot plane) → ferngesteuertes Flugzeug
vi
(bee) → summen ; (engine, aircraft) → brummen
(= speak monotonously: also drone away or on) → eintönig sprechen ; (in reciting) → leiern ; he droned on and on for hours → er redete stundenlang in seinem monotonen Tonfall ; we had to listen to him droning on about politics → wir mussten seinem monotonen Geschwafel über Politik zuhören (inf)
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

drone

[drəʊn]
1. n
a. (male bee) → fuco, pecchione m
b. (noise, of bees, aircraft) → ronzio ; (of voices) → brusio
2. vi (bee, engine, aircraft) → ronzare ; (person) (also drone on) → continuare a parlare (in modo monotono); (voice) → continuare a ronzare
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

drone

(drəun) noun
1. the male of the bee. hommel ذَكَر النَّحِل търтей zangão trubec die Drohne drone κηφήνας zángano leskmesilane, isamesilane زنبور عسل نر kuhnuri faux-bourdon דבור नर मधुमक्खी trut here (méh) lebah jantan karlbÿfluga fuco 雄蜂 수펄 tranas trans lebah jantan hommel drone, hannbie truteń د عسلو نر غومبسه zangão trân­­tor трутень trúd trot trut drönare ผึ้งตัวผู้ erkek arı 雄蜂 трутень نر مکھی ong mật đực 雄蜂
2. a person who is lazy and idle. leeglêer شَخْص كَسول търтей malandro lenoch der Nichtstuer dagdriver κηφήνας zángano logard آدم تن پرور kuhnuri fainéant/-ante בטלן कामचोर lijenčina semmittevő, here pemalas letingi, iðjuleysingi poltrone, fannullone 怠けもの 게으름쟁이 tranas liekēdis pemalas luilak latsabb, døgenikt truteń, leniuch نالايق سړى malandro trântor тунеядец leňoch lenuh parazit drönare คนขี้เกียจ tembel kimse, asalak 游手好閒者 ледар نکھٹو ، نکما kẻ ăn không ngồi rồi 懒汉
3. a deep, humming sound. the distant drone of traffic. gedreun طَنين бръмчене zumbido hučení das Brummen summen βουητό ruido, zumbido sumin صدای بم humina bourdonnement זמזום मधुमक्खी आदि की आवाज zujanje döngés dengungan drunur; suð brusio ブーンという音 (벌, 비행기 등이) ‘윙윙’거리는 소리 gausmas, ūžesys dūkšana; dūkoņa dengungan geronk summing, brumming brzęczenie د بم ږغ zumbido zumzet гул hučanie brnenje zujanje surr, susande, brummande เสียงต่ํา ๆ vızıltı, uğultu 低沉的嗡嗡聲 дзижчання, гудіння بھنبھناہٹ tiếng o o 深沉的嗡嗡声
verb
1. to make a low, humming sound. An aeroplane droned overhead. dreun يَطِنُّ бръмча zumbir vrčet, hučet brummen brumme βουίζω zumbar sumisema, põrisema صدای بم ایجاد کردن humista bourdonner לְזַמזֵם भिनभिनाहट की आवाज करना brujati zúg mendengung suða; drynja ronzare, fare brusio ブーンという音をたてる ‘윙윙’거리는 소리를 내다 gausti, ūžti dūkt mendengung ronken summe, brumme buczeć د بم ږغ جوړول zumbir a zumzăi гудеть hučať, bzučať brneti zujati surra ส่งเสียงหึ่ง ๆ vızıldamak, uğuldamak 發出低沉的嗡嗡聲 дзижчати, гудіти بھنبھنانا tạo ra âm thanh o o 发出嗡嗡声
2. to speak in a dull, boring voice. The lecturer droned on and on. brom يَتَكَلَّمُ بِصَوْتٍ مُمِل говоря монотонно falar monotonamente mluvit monotónně eintönig reden tale monotont μιλώ μονότονα hablar en tono monótono (monotoonselt) rääkima ملال آور ادا کردن puhua yksitoikkoisella äänellä parler d'une voix endormante לְבָרבֵּר בְּקוֹל מוֹנוֹטוֹנִי धीमी ऊबाउ आवाज में बोलना govoriti dosadnim glasom monoton hangon elmond mengoceh tala tilbreytingarlaust parlare in modo monotono, borbottare ものうげに言う 둔탁하고 단조로운 소리를 계속 내다 monotoniškai kalbėti, bambėti monotoni runāt mengoceh dreunen snakke monotont mówić monotonnym głosem په ناخوندوره توګه خبرى كول desfiar uma cantilena a bolborosi бубнить monotónne hovoriť monotono govoriti mumlati mumla, tala entonigt ทําเสียงพึมพําน่าเบื่อ monoton bir sesle konuşmak 用單調沈悶的聲音說話 монотонно говорити یکساں لہجے میں بولنا nói giọng đều đều 用单调沉闷的声音说话
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
References in classic literature ?
The young bee held it out in silence--unmistakably a drone leg incapable of packing pollen.
Another, an eyeless drone with no feelers, said that all brood-cells should be perfect circles, so as not to interfere with the grub or the workers.
May we not say that this is the drone in the house who is like the drone in the honeycomb, and that the one is the plague of the city as the other is of the hive?
View in context
His ears were filled with the incessant hum in various notes, now the busy hum of the working bee flying quickly off, then the blaring of the lazy drone, and the excited buzz of the bees on guard protecting their property from the enemy and preparing to sting.
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'Don't be afraid,' she said, 'it's only a drone. Drones have no stings.'
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All the men of this party were fishing for rubles, decorations, and promotions, and in this pursuit watched only the weathercock of imperial favor, and directly they noticed it turning in any direction, this whole drone population of the army began blowing hard that way, so that it was all the harder for the Emperor to turn it elsewhere.
View in context
Boarham by name, Bore'em, as I prefer spelling it, for a terrible bore he was: I shudder still at the remembrance of his voice - drone, drone, drone, in my ear - while he sat beside me, prosing away by the half-hour together, and beguiling himself with the notion that he was improving my mind by useful information, or impressing his dogmas upon me and reforming my errors of judgment, or perhaps that he was talking down to my level, and amusing me with entertaining discourse.
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That the usurer is the drone, that Virgil speaketh of;
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From the blank darkness outside came in, through the aperture that served for a window, all the ever unfamiliar noises of night in the wilderness--the long nameless note of a distant coyote; the stilly pulsing thrill of tireless insects in trees; strange cries of night birds, so different from those of the birds of day; the drone of great blundering beetles, and all that mysterious chorus of small sounds that seem always to have been but half heard when they have suddenly ceased, as if conscious of an indiscretion.
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"Your Sir William was a drone to Sir Paul, and knew nothing of regularity.
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Two tables further on, a palmer, with his pilgrim's costume complete, was practising the lament of the Holy Queen, not forgetting the drone and the nasal drawl.
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He must say he thought a drone the embodiment of a pleasanter and wiser idea.
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