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Glite Dictionary
scouting trip

scouting trip

1 3.4
A short trip to find out about an area
  • noun
  • /ˈskaʊtɪŋ trɪp/
  • US
translation icon : viaje de exploración
  • Before launching the new product, the company conducted a scouting trip to assess the market conditions.
  • go on a scouting trip
  • make a scouting trip

So when you're doing your scouting trip to an Egypt or Brazil or wherever you're going, you.

Examples

  • After a scouting trip to the University of Missouri in Columbia, Fannie gratefully acceded to her mother's tearful pleas to stay at home with her parents and go to college in St. Louis.

    Academic text (2002)

  • We want you all to join us on another scouting trip.

    Terror Trips (2022)

  • A scouting trip would have been a good thing.

    Blog text (4)

  • What seems like a long time ago, on my first scouting trip to Portugal, Richard took me to a small village.

    Blog text (15)

  • These Midwest scouting trips paid off sometimes.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Quentin and Zim would sometimes come out on "scouting trips" that summer and fall when they were buying the place.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • While on this scouting trip, we found two dead moose that had been illegally shot, quartered, and left for the coyotes to eat.

    Blog text (6)

  • The team planned a scouting trip to gather data about potential camping sites for the summer camp.

  • We decided to undertake a scouting trip to better understand the hiking trails in the national park.

Synonyms

expedition
vsscouting trip
358 4.1

An organized trip by a group for a special purpose like exploring or doing research

is narrowly focused on gathering area intelligence before later actions
exploration
vsscouting trip
156 2.8

To travel through a place to find new things, like a jungle or ocean

is aimed at pre-action information rather than general discovery or learning
reccy
vsscouting trip
  • Jargon
9.9

A short trip to check a place before an event

is a planned journey specifically to gather information before further action

How Long

expedition
358 4.1
reconnaissance
  • Specialized
67 8.2
scouting trip
  • US
1 3.4
field trip
95 1.0
quick trip
11 1.4

Surface Forms

scouting trip singular
scouting trips plural

Morphology

scouting + trip

The meaning 'an expedition to gather information' is directly and compositionally derived from 'scouting' (exploring to gather information) + 'trip' (a journey). This purpose-modifying noun+noun pattern is common and cross-linguistically transparent, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Scouting trip comes from sending a small group of scouts on a short trip ahead of the main group to look around and find safe routes or camps. So, it now means 'a short journey to gather information about an area'.