Amber Alert

noun

variants or less commonly Amber alert or amber alert
plural Amber Alerts also Amber alerts or amber alerts
US
: a widely publicized bulletin that alerts the public to a recently abducted or missing child
… State Police activated the Amber Alert in search of a male infant who they believed was kidnapped …Fall River (Massachusetts) News
State Police put out an Amber alertTravis Andersen
… sends a text message … for emergency alerts (like hurricanes and amber alerts) …Greg Ganske
Amber Alerts are issued when a child under 18 is abducted and believed to be in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death.Anthony Maenza
compare blue alert, silver alert

Examples of Amber Alert in a Sentence

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.
The victims, who police identified as the man's 33-year-old girlfriend and four children, ages 3, 7, 11 and 14, were found safe in the vehicle, according the Crow Wing County Sheriff's Office, the agency that reported the family missing, triggering a statewide Amber Alert. Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 1 Nov. 2024 After the two bodies were discovered by APD, an Amber Alert was issued for Anseume-Corredor's three children. Jasmine Baehr, Fox News, 17 Oct. 2024 Lee, of the Dock Ellis Foundation, said that the Ebony Alert has saved lives, but thus far it’s suffered from the same shortcomings of the Amber Alert. Marquise Francis, NBC News, 10 Oct. 2024 Authorities are asking the public for help locating a 16-year-old at-risk youth at the center of an Amber Alert in North Texas. Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 5 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for Amber Alert 

Word History

Etymology

from the U.S. Justice Department AMBER Alert Program that issues such bulletins, originally from Amber Hagerman †1996 U.S. victim of an abduction, later read as an acronym for America's Missing Broadcast Emergency Response

First Known Use

1997, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Amber Alert was in 1997

Dictionary Entries Near Amber Alert

Cite this Entry

“Amber Alert.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Amber%20Alert. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

Amber alert

noun
: a widely publicized bulletin that alerts the public to a recently abducted or missing child

Legal Definition

Amber Alert

noun
: a widely publicized bulletin that alerts the public to a recently abducted or missing child
Etymology

from the U.S. Justice Dept. AMBER Alert Program that issues such bulletins, originally from Amber Hagerman †1996 victim of an abduction, later read as America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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