fleet
1
[ fleet ]
/ flit /
noun
the largest organized unit of naval ships grouped for tactical or other purposes.
the largest organization of warships under the command of a single officer.
a number of naval vessels or vessels carrying armed crew members.
a large group of ships, airplanes, trucks, etc., operated by a single company or under the same ownership: He owns a fleet of cabs.
a large group of airplanes, automobiles, etc., moving or operating together.
Origin of fleet
1Words nearby fleet
Definition for fleet (2 of 3)
fleet
2
[ fleet ]
/ flit /
adjective, fleet·er, fleet·est.
swift; rapid: to be fleet of foot; a fleet horse.
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
to cause (time) to pass lightly or swiftly.
Nautical.
- to move or change the position of.
- to separate the blocks of (a tackle).
- to lay (a rope) along a deck.
Origin of fleet
2OTHER WORDS FROM fleet
fleet·ly, adverb fleet·ness, nounDefinition for fleet (3 of 3)
fleet
3
[ fleet ]
/ flit /
noun British Dialect.
an arm of the sea; inlet.
a creek; stream; watercourse.
the Fleet,
a former prison in London, long used for debtors.
Origin of fleet
3
before 900; Middle English
flete, Old English
flēot flowing water; cognate with German
Fliess brook;
(def 3) after
the Fleet a stream, later covered and used as a sewer, near which the prison was located
Example sentences from the Web for fleet
British Dictionary definitions for fleet (1 of 4)
fleet
1
/ (fliːt) /
noun
a number of warships organized as a tactical unit
all the warships of a nation
a number of aircraft, ships, buses, etc, operating together or under the same ownership
Word Origin for fleet
Old English
flēot ship, flowing water, from
flēotan to
float
British Dictionary definitions for fleet (2 of 4)
fleet
2
/ (fliːt) /
adjective
rapid in movement; swift
poetic
fleeting; transient
verb
Derived forms of fleet
fleetly, adverb fleetness, nounWord Origin for fleet
probably Old English
flēotan to float, glide rapidly; related to Old High German
fliozzan to flow, Latin
pluere to rain
British Dictionary definitions for fleet (3 of 4)
fleet
3
/ (fliːt) /
noun
mainly Southeast English
a small coastal inlet; creek
Word Origin for fleet
Old English
flēot flowing water; see
fleet
1
British Dictionary definitions for fleet (4 of 4)
Fleet
/ (fliːt) /
noun the Fleet
a stream that formerly ran into the Thames between Ludgate Hill and Fleet Street and is now a covered sewer
Also called: Fleet Prison
(formerly) a London prison, esp used for holding debtors