flotilla
noun
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Flotilla comes from the diminutive form of the Spanish noun flota, meaning "fleet." Flota derives via Old French from Old Norse floti and is related to Old English flota (meaning "ship" or "fleet"), an ancestor to English's float. Much like other words referring to groups of particular things (such as swarm), flotilla has taken on expanded usage to refer simply to a large number of something not necessarily having to do with nautical matters, often with humorous effect (e.g., "a flotilla of rather mature-looking male models" — Jed Perl, The New Republic).
Examples of flotilla in a Sentence
Debra Utacia Krol, AZCentral.com, 21 July 2025
Additional flotillas were intercepted in 2015, about 100 miles off the Gaza Coast, and in 2018.
—Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 June 2025
Newsweek's map shows that the Chinese flotilla, which has remained outside Australia's territorial waters that extend 12 nautical miles from its shores during the deployment, departed from the country's 200-nautical-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 28 Feb. 2025
The cruise will wrap up with an overnight stop in New York – which will host the largest flotilla of tall ships from across the globe in the Port of New York and New Jersey – before returning to Boston.
—Nathan Diller, USA Today, 4 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for flotilla
Cite this Entry
“Flotilla.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flotilla. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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flotilla
noun
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