squadron
Americannoun
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a portion of a naval fleet or a detachment of warships; a subdivision of a fleet.
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an armored cavalry or cavalry unit consisting of two or more troops, a headquarters, and various supporting units.
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(in the U.S. Air Force).
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the basic administrative and tactical unit, smaller than a group and composed of two or more flights.
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a flight formation.
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a number of persons grouped or united together for some purpose; group.
verb (used with object)
noun
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a subdivision of a naval fleet detached for a particular task
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a number of naval units usually of similar type and consisting of two or more divisions
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a cavalry unit comprising two or more troops, headquarters, and supporting arms
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the basic tactical and administrative air force unit comprising two or more flights
Other Word Forms
- half-squadron noun
- subsquadron noun
Etymology
Origin of squadron
1555–65; < Italian squadrone, equivalent to squadr ( a ) square + -one augmentative suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Meanwhile RAF F-35 jets and Typhoons based in Cyprus, along with a squadron of Typhoons based in Qatar, continue to fly over the Middle East as part of a defensive operation.
From BBC
He poured forces into the region including two aircraft carriers, half a dozen B-2 bombers, a squadron of advanced F-35 fighters, and destroyers armed with guided missiles.
The other was bestowed on a 100-year-old Navy pilot who led his squadron to victory in a 1952 Korean War aerial battle against an overwhelming enemy force that remained secret until 2002.
“Flying through blizzard conditions, his squadron was ambushed by seven Soviet fighter planes.”
From Los Angeles Times
Air Force deployed entire wings of warplanes, instead of the squadrons that are being sent now, to carry out a six-week air campaign.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
