escort

1 of 2

noun

es·​cort ˈe-ˌskȯrt How to pronounce escort (audio)
plural escorts
Synonyms of escortnext
1
a(1)
: a person or group of persons accompanying another to give protection, provide supervision, or as a courtesy
a police escort
Visitors are not allowed to enter the building without an escort.
(2)
: a man who goes with a woman to a social event
(3)
: a person and especially a sex worker who is hired to go with someone to a social event
—often used before another noun
an escort service/agency
b
: a protective screen of warships or fighter planes or a single ship or plane used to fend off enemy attack from one or more vulnerable craft
2
: accompaniment by a person or an armed protector (such as a ship)

escort

2 of 2

verb

es·​cort i-ˈskȯrt How to pronounce escort (audio)
e-, 
ˈe-ˌskȯrt How to pronounce escort (audio)
escorted; escorting; escorts

transitive verb

: to accompany as an escort

Synonyms of escort

Relevance

Noun

Verb

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of escort in a Sentence

Noun Visitors are not allowed to enter the building without an escort. The bombers were protected by a fighter escort. Everyone was surprised when she arrived at the party without an escort. Verb Several fighters escorted the bombers back to base. a student from the college escorted my parents and me on our tour of the campus
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Her stepmother is better known as Ashley Dupré, the escort wrapped up in the middle of the Eliot Spitzer prostitution scandal. — Peter White, Deadline, 2 Sep. 2026 Nowadays, their escorts are uniformed marshals rather than beautiful women in bikinis. — Jonny Hallam, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026
Verb
If any normal American walked off the job without permission once a year for four straight years, security would escort them out of the building. — Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 1 Sep. 2026 Beyond the missile fields The Grey Wolf’s role will extend beyond escorting convoys and responding to emergencies around ICBM sites. — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 1 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for escort

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French escorte, from Italian scorta, from scorgere to guide, from Vulgar Latin *excorrigere, from Latin ex- + corrigere to make straight, correct — more at correct

First Known Use

Noun

1579, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Verb

1708, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of escort was in 1579

Phrases Containing escort

Rhymes for escort

See All Rhymes for escort

Browse Nearby Words

escopette
escort
escort carrier
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Escort.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/escort. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

escort

1 of 2 noun
es·​cort ˈes-ˌkȯ(ə)rt How to pronounce escort (audio)
1
: a person or group of persons accompanying another to give protection or show courtesy
2
: the man who goes on a date with a woman
3
: a protective screen of vehicles, warships, or planes
motorcycle escort
fighter escort

escort

2 of 2 verb
es·​cort is-ˈkȯ(ə)rt How to pronounce escort (audio) es-ˈ How to pronounce escort (audio)
ˈes-ˌ
: to go along with as an escort
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of apiary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All