Definition of FRIGATE

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In the 17th–19th centuries, a frigate was a three-masted, fully rigged sailing ship, often carrying 30–40 guns in all. Smaller and faster than ships of the line (the principal vessels of naval warfare), frigates served as scouts or as escorts protecting merchant convoys; they also cruised the seas as merchant raiders themselves. In World War II, Britain revived the term frigate using it to describe escort ships equipped with sonar and depth charges, and used these ships to guard convoys from submarines. In the postwar decades, the frigate also adopted an antiaircraft role, adding radar and surface-to-air missiles. Modern frigates can sail at a speed of 30 knots and carry a crew of 200.

Examples of frigate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

China's Liaoning aircraft carrier was accompanied by navy frigates and submarines during exercises in the South China Sea in April. — Gordon Lubold, WSJ, "Mattis Seeks ‘Conversation’ With China Despite Tension," 25 June 2018 The shipyard is also competing to build a new class of frigates. — David Sharp, The Seattle Times, "Workers emerging from painful reset at Bath Iron Works," 21 Jan. 2018 Destroyers have approximately 330 sailors per ship, aircraft carriers hold as many as 6,000, and the frigates hold approximately 205. — Matt Sussis And Yingjie Gu, USA TODAY, "Navy’s planned shipbuilding spree overlooks looming sailor shortage," 29 June 2018 India has old amphibious ships, and several allies sail older frigates and destroyers, some with significant weapon upgrades. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "The US Navy Could Grow to 355 Ships by 2032," 22 June 2018 In 2020 the Navy plans to award a contract for 20 frigates called the FFG(X) class. — Lawrence Specker, AL.com, "Shelby likes Austal's chances for Navy frigate contract," 1 May 2018 BAE Systems, the world’s fourth-biggest defence company, won a contract to build nine Type 26 Hunter class frigates for the Australian navy. — The Economist, "Business this week," 5 July 2018 The frigates will be built at the Osborne Naval Shipyard in South Australia state. — Rob Taylor, WSJ, "Australia’s $26 Billion Warship Deal Goes to Britain’s BAE," 28 June 2018 The Sachsen class frigates are designed to intercept enemy missiles and aircraft, and are equipped with 32 Mark 41 vertical launch silos built into the bow, just in front of the bridge. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "A German Warship Was Scorched By Its Own Missile," 27 June 2018

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