battalion
Americannoun
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Military. a ground force unit composed of a headquarters and two or more companies or similar units.
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an army in battle array.
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Often battalions. a large number of persons or things; force.
battalions of bureaucrats.
noun
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a military unit comprised of three or more companies or formations of similar size
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(usually plural) any large array
Other Word Forms
- subbattalion noun
Etymology
Origin of battalion
1580–90; < Middle French bataillon < Italian battaglione large squadron of soldiers, equivalent to battagli ( a ) battalia ( def. ) + -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.
A well-regarded battalion commander in Yemen’s armed forces, Ashaal, then 42, worked a sideline in real estate with a partner.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026
Frustrated with the pace of change, last year, Breuer started to give money directly to battalion and brigade commanders so they can buy off-the-shelf commercial drones and other equipment so they can experiment.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026
Grant Gilchrist survives the challenge of a battalion of second rows, but there are two seriously impressive operators to come off the bench.
From BBC • Feb. 5, 2026
The sight of the full battalion brings grins to every passerby.
From Salon • Feb. 5, 2026
As the Russians advanced, his Hitler Youth battalion was sent to dig trenches at the front line, now just thirty miles east of Berlin.
From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
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.
