sortie

sor·tie | \ ˈsȯr-tē

How to pronounce sortie (audio)

, sȯr-ˈtē \

Definition of sortie

1 : a sudden issuing of troops from a defensive position against the enemy

2 : one mission or attack by a single plane

3a : foray, raid

b : excursion, expedition diving sorties

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Examples of sortie in a Sentence

an occasional sortie to the city to rummage through some of its numerous used-book stores

Recent Examples on the Web Saturday’s 777x sortie lasted nearly 4 hours over Washington state and included a trip around Mt. Rainier. — Rob Verger, Popular Science, "Boeing’s massive wing-folding 777x just flew for the first time," 29 Jan. 2020 The Navy claims that the Ford class will be able to generate 33 percent more aircraft sorties for less money, saving $4 billion over the life of the carrier compared to older Nimitz ships. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Say Hello To America’s Newest Aircraft Carrier, the USS John F. Kennedy," 10 Dec. 2019 Women, usually excluded from the dawn assembly, have to risk embarrassment, assault and worse with sorties in the dark. — The Economist, "World Toilet Day this week is not a joke, but deadly serious," 17 Nov. 2019 Frederic Barbry said on Thursday that France’s Rafales, based in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, made 14 sorties this week. — Washington Post, "The Latest: Iran invites US agency to help with crash probe," 10 Jan. 2020 In 2018, the military halted a program in which U.S. planes refueled Gulf combat jets amid criticism of the civilian casualties caused by coalition air sorties. — Author: John Hudson, Missy Ryan, Josh Dawsey, Anchorage Daily News, "On day US forces killed Soleimani, they launched another secret operation targeting Iranian official in Yemen," 10 Jan. 2020 The Navy gambled that, in future conflicts, range would have to take a backseat to aircraft reliability and sortie generation. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Boeing Will Build the Navy's MQ-25 Stingray Carrier-Based Tanker Drone," 4 Sep. 2018 Frye flew 1,100 combat sorties in Vietnam, earning 63 decorations that included the Silver Star, two Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Meritorious Service Medal and 13 Air Medals. — Sig Christenson, ExpressNews.com, "Salutes to veterans in San Antonio to include parade, Fort Sam ceremony," 7 Nov. 2019 In short order, American air sorties rendered a devastating assault on Qaddafi’s forces. — Brian Stewart, National Review, "The Education of a Cynic," 5 Oct. 2019

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

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Last Updated

6 Feb 2020

Cite this Entry

“Sortie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sortie. Accessed 17 Feb. 2020.

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