1. n. a person who is positioned to observe someone or something. (see also
stake someone/something out.)
The stakeout stuck out like a sore thumb—standing there under the streetlight reading a paper. The stakeout was one of Marlowe’s best operatives. 2. n. a (police) assignment where someone is positioned to observe someone or something. The stakeout at the warehouse backfired. They only found cats.