I. ˈkänˌvȯi, kənˈv- transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English convoyen, from Middle French convoier, conveier — more at convey
1.
a. : accompany , escort
convoy him out across the terrace — D.C.Peattie
: guide , conduct
b. : to accompany or escort for protection
he is … convoyed by Secret Service agents — Newsweek
specifically : to provide protective escort for (as a group of merchant ships)
tankers convoyed by destroyers and aircraft
2. obsolete : carry , convey
II. ˈkänˌvȯi noun
( -s )
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle French convoi, from convoier
1. : one that convoys, escorts, or accompanies: as
a. : a funeral train
b. : a protective force (as of troops or warships) escorting ships, persons, or goods moving by sea or land : escort
a Dutch man-of-war of forty guns, which was convoy to the … fleet — Richard Steele
c. : conductor , guide
Oh be some god his convoy to our shore — Alexander Pope
2. : the act of convoying, accompanying, or escorting especially for protection
they vanished quietly upstairs in convoy of the manager's wife — Arnold Bennett
to obtain the convoy of a man-of-war — T.B.Macaulay
3. : an individual or group that is convoyed or a group organized for convenience or protection in moving: as
a. : a train of vehicles transporting goods under armed escort : a group of persons or vehicles traveling under escort
b. : a body of merchant ships sailing under the protection of an armed escort
each convoy escorted by seven warships
c. : a body of persons or vehicles organized into a unit for the purpose of orderly or efficient movement
a storm was raging … and cars had to fight their way through in convoy — G.R.Stewart