battalion

noun

bat·​tal·​ion bə-ˈtal-yən How to pronounce battalion (audio)
1
: a considerable body of troops organized to act together : army
2
: a military unit composed of a headquarters and two or more companies, batteries, or similar units
3
: a large group

Examples of battalion in a Sentence

a battalion of angry protesters the nation's battalions were forced to fight on two fronts simultaneously
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.
That leads Luke Leone (Michael Trucco) to bring in a controversial new battalion chief, Brett Richards (Shawn Hatosy) — a man Vince couldn’t stand, according to Sharon. Alamin Yohannes, Entertainment Weekly, 18 Oct. 2025 Part of life moving on is appointing a new battalion chief, which was shaping up to be quite a fight, with Bode and Jake going at each other at the funeral. Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 17 Oct. 2025 The rest of his tank battalion was killed in fighting, with their bodies taken to Gaza. Callum Sutherland, Time, 13 Oct. 2025 Avivi said that gathering information on Hamas terrorists and the organization’s structure has been an ongoing effort for years, including mapping platoons, companies, and battalions, as well as identifying commanders. Amelie Botbol, FOXNews.com, 7 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for battalion

Word History

Etymology

Middle French bataillon, from Old Italian battaglione, augmentative of battaglia company of soldiers, battle, from Late Latin battalia combat — more at battle entry 1

First Known Use

1579, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of battalion was in 1579

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Battalion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/battalion. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

battalion

noun
bat·​tal·​ion bə-ˈtal-yən How to pronounce battalion (audio)
1
: a large body of troops : army
2
: a military unit composed of two or more smaller units (as companies or batteries)
3
: a large body of persons organized to act together

More from Merriam-Webster on battalion

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!