sortie

noun

sor·​tie ˈsȯr-tē How to pronounce sortie (audio)
sȯr-ˈtē
1
: a sudden issuing of troops from a defensive position against the enemy
2
: one mission or attack by a single plane
3
a
: foray, raid
b
: excursion, expedition
diving sorties
sortie intransitive verb
sortied; sortieing

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 Within a couple of weeks of the first spraying sorties, Palo Alto police heard what sounded like gunshots as the helicopters passed overhead. Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2024 Fiat 500e: Tiny and inimitably Italian, this electric city car is Stellantis’ second sortie into modernizing and expanding the appeal of its many brands. Mark Phelan, Detroit Free Press, 13 Sep. 2024 Counting only sorties in which at least one weapon was released, about three-fourths of the action took place during the Obama years. Abc News, ABC News, 18 July 2024 The first is China’s gray-zone coercion, which involves activities such as disinformation campaigns, election interference plots, and military provocations such as jet sorties that routinely cross the median line of the Taiwan Strait. Jaushieh Joseph Wu, Foreign Affairs, 9 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for sortie 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sortie.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

French, from Middle French, from sortir to go out, leave

First Known Use

1778, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of sortie was in 1778

Dictionary Entries Near sortie

Cite this Entry

“Sortie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sortie. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

sortie

noun
sor·​tie ˈsȯrt-ē How to pronounce sortie (audio)
sȯr-ˈtē
: a sudden rushing out of troops from a position of defense against the enemy : sally
sortie verb

More from Merriam-Webster on sortie

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!