A Horse patrol of the United States Forest Service Law Enforcement & Investigations .

A patrol performed by United States Secret Service officers.

In military tactics, a patrol is a small tactical grouping sent out by land, sea or air to perform a specific task. Military tactics ( Greek: Taktikē, the art of organizing an army are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating A patrol may be a reconnaissance patrol, sent to investigate some feature of interest, or a fighting patrol (US combat patrol), sent to find and engage the enemy. Reconnaissance (also scouting) is a military and medical term denoting exploration conducted to gain information

A patrol is also a small cavalry or armoured unit, subordinate to a troop or platoon. The Cavalry (from French cavalerie) is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as Soldiers or Warriors who fought mounted on Armoured warfare or tank warfare is the use of Armoured fighting vehicles in Modern warfare. A military organization is a way of structuring the armed forces of a State as a need to offer Military capability required by the National defence policy A troop is a Military unit, originally a small force of Cavalry, subordinate to a Squadron and headed by the troop leader A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two to four sections or Squads and containing about 30 to 50 soldiers A patrol usually comprises a section or squad of mounted troopers, or two AFVs (often tanks). A section is a small Infantry unit first introduced in the British Army. In military terminology a squad is a small Military unit led by a Non-commissioned officer (NCO that is subordinate to an Infantry An armoured fighting vehicle ( AFV) is a military Vehicle, protected by armour and armed with Weapons Most AFVs are equipped for driving in rugged A tank is a tracked, Armoured fighting vehicle designed for Front-line combat which combines Operational mobility and tactical

In law enforcement, patrol officers are uniformed police officers assigned to patrol specified geographic areas. They are the officers most commonly encountered by the public, as their duties include responding to calls for service, making arrests, resolving disputes, taking crime reports, and conducting traffic enforcement, and other crime prevention measures. The patrol officer is the first on the scene to arrive. What they do or fail to do at the scene greatly influences the outcome of an investigation. The patrol officer, as the person daily in the field, is closest to potential crime and has probably developed contacts who can provide information.

Some elementary schools use the term patrol to refer to students who are selected to monitor safety in the classroom or to those students who assist crossing guards with safety of children crossing busy streets. See also Primary education An elementary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of Compulsory education known as elementary Safety is the state of being "safe" (from French sauf) the condition of being protected against physical social spiritual financial political Rm46jpg|thumb|Classroom in St Eunan's College, Letterkenny, Ireland]] A classroom is a Room in which Teaching or Learning activities A crossing guard ( United States) a school crossing patrol officer ( United Kingdom) school crossing supervisor ( Australia) or A street is a Public thoroughfare in the built environment It is a Public parcel of land adjoining Buildings in an urban context Another common term for this use of patrol is hall monitor. A hall monitor is a student volunteer in American schools who is charged with maintaining order in the school's corridors

In Surf Lifesaving, volunteer patrol units monitor the beaches during the summer. Surf lifesaving is a multifaceted movement that comprises key aspects of voluntary Lifeguard services and competitive surf sport In Australia and some other countries, the patrolled area is marked by red and yellow flags.

In Scouting, a patrol is six to eight children under the leadership of one of them, the basic unit of the Scout movement. Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide Youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical mental and spiritual The Patrol method is an essential characteristic of Scouting by which it differs from all other organizations, using the natural dynamics of the gang for an educational purpose. The Scout method is the informal educational system used by Scouting.

Etymology

The word "patrol" came from French patrouiller = "to patrol"; earlier it meant "to paddle in the mud", perhaps via men repeatedly patrolling along the same unpaved path until it turned to mud. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people