1. To make a continuous, low, monotonous sound.
2. To speak at length in a dull, monotonous way.
3. A vehicle, especially an aircraft, operated without a person on board, either remotely or automatically.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- an engine drones
- drone in the distance
On the page
An unseen pump droned beneath the floorboards throughout the interview.
Nearby words
Word forms
- Base
- drone
- Past tense
- droned
- Past participle
- droned
- Present participle
- droning
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- drone
- Present continuous
- am/is/are droning
- Present perfect
- have/has droned
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been droning
- Past
- droned
- Past continuous
- was/were droning
- Past perfect
- had droned
- Past perfect continuous
- had been droning
- Future
- will drone
- Future continuous
- will be droning
- Future perfect
- will have droned
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been droning
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
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Usage notes
Primary category: literary / elevated general. Forms: drone; drones; droned; droned; droning. Noun singular drone; plural drones. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: dialogue, description. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: drones.
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