fleet

play

verb \ ˈflēt \

Definition of fleet

intransitive verb

1 obsolete :drift

2 a archaic :flow

b :to fade away :vanish

[³fleet]

:to fly swiftly

clouds fleeting across the sky

transitive verb

:to cause (time) to pass usually quickly or imperceptibly

many young gentlemen … fleet the time carelessly
—William Shakespeare

Recent Examples of fleet from the Web

Seniors already showing signs of memory decline received the biggest benefits from eating chocolate, though young and healthy adults who snack on cocoa did slightly better on cognitive tests as well, although those effects were fleeting.

— meghan overdeep, Southern Living, "Scientists Find That Eating Chocolate Every Day is Good for Your Brain," 6 July 2017
Like Esau, who exchanged his inheritance for a pot of stew, white evangelicals have traded their distinctive values for fleeting political power.

— robert p. jones, The Atlantic, "Trump Can't Reverse the Decline of White Christian America," 4 July 2017
A 14 percent slide in sales to fleet customers drove Ford’s decline.

— jamie butters, Bloomberg.com, "SUVs Save the Day Again in June as Total U.S. Car Demand Softens," 3 July 2017
The Berkeley Charter boats fleet fished Central Bay for bass and halibut or ran outside to hook into limits of salmon.

— sacbee, sacbee.com, "Shad fishing still has promise as salmon season approaches," 3 July 2017
Despite fleeting screen time, Laura and Bob played prominently into the episode.

— nathan paige, cleveland.com, "'Twin Peaks' Episode 8: Uhhh ... what???," 26 June 2017
And youth and beauty, all of these things are fleeting.

— laura cohen, Redbook, "How Hilaria Baldwin Got Back In Shape After 3 Babies," 17 June 2017
More information (June 17, Cooper Design Space) Pasadena Chalk Festival Sidewalk chalk, like time or the availability of your fave Netflix series, is fleeting.

— marielle wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 5 Best Things to Do in L.A. This Weekend, Hands Down," 16 June 2017
More information (June 17, Cooper Design Space) Pasadena Chalk Festival Sidewalk chalk, like time or the availability of your fave Netflix series, is fleeting.

— marielle wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 5 Best Things to Do in L.A. This Weekend, Hands Down," 16 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fleet.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of fleet

Middle English fleten, from Old English flēotan; akin to Old High German fliozzan to float, Old English flōwan to flow

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

fleet

noun

Definition of fleet

1 :a number of warships under a single command; specifically :an organization of ships and aircraft under the command of a flag officer

2 :group 2a; especially :a group (as of ships, planes, or trucks) operated under unified control

See fleet defined for English-language learners

See fleet defined for kids

Examples of fleet in a Sentence

He was the commander of the Pacific fleet.
The company has a large fleet of delivery trucks.

Recent Examples of fleet from the Web

According to Northrop Grumman literature, GBSD will involve a total overhaul of the entire ICBM system, including new missiles, new launch control buildings, and the logistical and communications infrastructure that supports the ICBM fleet.

— kyle mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "What We Know About the U.S.'s New Nuclear Missile," 23 Aug. 2017
In a hangarlike building here, Mr. Renton restores and maintains one of the few operational fleets of World War II vehicles and artillery in the country.

— corey kilgannon, New York Times, "Keeping the Tanks Rolling. Jeeps and Cannons, Too.," 10 Aug. 2017
Sandboxes A shady, damp sandbox after April showers is prime breeding ground for a whole fleet of mosquitoes.

— jamie wiebe, House Beautiful, "The Sneaky Places Mosquitoes Hide in Your Yard," 6 Aug. 2017
The U.S. will soon be adding two more Air Force one aircraft to its fleet.

— leada gore, AL.com, "Planes built for bankrupt Russian airlines could be new Air Force Ones," 2 Aug. 2017
Her ability to hit and create chaos with her fleet feet gave the opposition fits and built a name for her beyond the Jewel City or the area and even beyond the state of California.

— grant gordon, Glendale News-Press, "All-Area Softball Player of the Year: Glendale High's Smiling Sammy swings to success," 30 July 2017
Perhaps the most impressive feature of the fleet is the Sky Lounge, which lifts itself up to create a roof deck (see photo at top).

— taysha murtaugh, Country Living, "This Luxury RV Is Basically a Palace on Wheels," 27 July 2017
Illinois Central spokesman Jim Love said the company did offer a new fleet in its original bid, but because of a lack of action the company lost its window of opportunity to order the buses.

— carole carlson, Post-Tribune, "Changed vote clears way for Gary school bus service," 27 July 2017
Pace uses its own paratransit vans in the suburbs and subcontractor vans in the city, but the agency would like to have its own fleet everywhere, Skogbakken said.

— mary wisniewski, chicagotribune.com, "For those with disabilities, a closer look at RTA's paratransit service," 23 July 2017

Origin and Etymology of fleet

Middle English flete, from Old English flēot ship, from flēotan

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

fleet Synonyms

Synonyms

armada, caravan, cavalcade, line, motorcade, train

Related Words

argosy, convoy, flotilla, navy; column, cortege (also cortège), parade, procession

Other Military Terms

bivouac, logistics, petard, salient, sally, supernumerary, tactical

fleet

adjective

Definition of fleet

1 :swift in motion :nimble

2 :fleeting

—

fleetly

adverb

—

fleetness

noun

See fleet defined for English-language learners

Examples of fleet in a Sentence

a jewel thief said to be light of heart and fleet of foot

Recent Examples of fleet from the Web

Several girls cross country teams from the area are in the running for regional and state championships but locals are chasing Northern Kentucky's fleetest afoot: St. Henry in Class A, Highlands in Class 2A and Class 3A's Simon Kenton.

— marc hardin, Cincinnati.com, "St. Henry, Highlands, SK girls cross country the teams to chase in NKY," 25 Aug. 2017
Steve Kudla is probably known as the fleetest flavorist around McCormick and Company after his performance in a 5K race last Saturday.

— bill blewett, The Aegis, "Steve Kudla loves running and Old Bay," 25 May 2017
While Onyewu and Elliott aren't the fleetest of foot, both are rarely out of position.

— marc narducci, Philly.com, "Union's five-game unbeaten surge built on key position changes," 19 May 2017
Yokosuka is one of the most important military ports in the Pacific, home to both the U.S. 7th Fleet and the fleet headquarters of the Japan Maritime Self Defense Forces, Japan's navy.

— kyle mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Two U.S. Aircraft Carriers Are Now Prowling the Pacific," 17 May 2017
In fast and fleet fashion, Pohjonen zipped through the outer movements, producing a good deal of color and subtly underlining the score's jazz elements.

— tim smith, baltimoresun.com, "Atmosphere, virtuosity in BSO program with Markus Stenz, Juho Pohjonen," 5 May 2017

Origin and Etymology of fleet

probably from ¹fleet

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1529

See Words from the same year

fleet Synonyms

Synonyms

blistering, breakneck, breathless, brisk, dizzy, fast, fleet-footed, flying, galloping, hasty, hot, lightning, nippy, quick, rapid, rapid-fire, rattling, snappy, speedy, splitting, swift, whirlwind, zippy

Antonyms

slow

Related Words

expeditious, prompt, ready; accelerated, hastened, hurried, quickened, rushed; breathtaking; energetic, strenuous, strong, vigorous; high-speed; rush; ultrafast, ultrarapid

Near Antonyms

crawling, dallying, dawdling, dillydallying, dragging, laggard, languid, lingering, plodding, poking, poky (or pokey), slowish, sluggish, unhurried; deliberate, leisurely, measured; dilatory, late, tardy; ultraslow

Synonym Discussion of fleet

fast, rapid, swift, fleet, quick, speedy, hasty, expeditious mean moving, proceeding, or acting with celerity. fast and rapid are very close in meaning, but fast applies particularly to the thing that moves

- fast horses

and rapid to the movement itself.

- rapid current

swift suggests great rapidity coupled with ease of movement.

- returned the ball with one swift stroke

fleet adds the implication of lightness and nimbleness.

- fleet runners

quick suggests promptness and the taking of little time.

- a quick wit

speedy implies quickness of successful accomplishment

- speedy delivery of mail

and may also suggest unusual velocity. hasty suggests hurry and precipitousness and often connotes carelessness.

- a hasty inspection

expeditious suggests efficiency together with rapidity of accomplishment.

- the expeditious handling of an order

FLEET Defined for English Language Learners

fleet

noun

Definition of fleet for English Language Learners

: a group of military ships that are controlled by one leader
: all of a country's military ships
: a group of ships or vehicles that move or work together or that are controlled or owned by one company

fleet

adjective

Definition of fleet for English Language Learners

: very fast

FLEET Defined for Kids

fleet

play

noun \ ˈflēt \

Definition of fleet for Students

1 :a group of warships under one commander

2 :a country's navy

3 :a group of ships or vehicles that move together or are owned by one company

a fishing fleet

a fleet of taxis

fleet

adjective

Definition of fleet for Students

fleeter; fleetest

:very swift

a fleet runner

—

fleetly

adverb

ran fleetly

Learn More about fleet

See words that rhyme with fleet Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for fleet Spanish Central: Translation of fleet Nglish: Translation of fleet for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of fleet for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about fleet

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fleet

Definition of fleet

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Origin and Etymology of fleet

fleet

Definition of fleet

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Recent Examples of fleet from the Web

Origin and Etymology of fleet

fleet Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Other Military Terms

fleet

Definition of fleet

fleetly

fleetness

Examples of fleet in a Sentence

Recent Examples of fleet from the Web

Origin and Etymology of fleet

fleet Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Synonym Discussion of fleet

Phrases Related to FLEET

Related Phrases

FLEET Defined for English Language Learners

fleet

Definition of fleet for English Language Learners

fleet

Definition of fleet for English Language Learners

FLEET Defined for Kids

fleet

Definition of fleet for Students

fleet

Definition of fleet for Students

fleetly

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