detachments

noun

plural of detachment
as in patrols
a small military unit with a special task or function the general sent a detachment ahead to scout the enemy's position

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of detachments His career spanned roles as Naval Security Group detachments in Japan and San Diego. — Julie Gallant, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 May 2026 Additional police resources were deployed to the area from neighboring detachments, along with the North District Emergency Response Team. — Alexandra Koch , Michael Sinkewicz, FOXNews.com, 11 Feb. 2026 The Israeli military has amassed two major groups of armored vehicles in Sheikh Radwan, to the north of Gaza City, according to the imagery, with additional detachments of armored vehicles stationed along roads that lead toward Israel. — CNN Money, 17 Sep. 2025 Although the much smaller Michino’o/Togitsu metal foundry detachments could not compete with the Ōhashi unit in terms of sheer noise and numbers, these girls were in high spirits this fine and yet‑too‑hot hot morning. — Literary Hub, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for detachments
  1. troops
  2. battalions
  3. squads
  4. squadrons
  5. platoons
Noun
  • Gerasimov also claimed Russian troops had overcome the first defensive line of the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk fortified region in certain areas and that operations were currently advancing along a 160-kilometer front.
    — Sam Meredith, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Some of those attacks have killed and wounded American troops.
    — Emma Burrows, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of troops
Noun
  • Originally constructed in the 1860s to house two battalions of the British Army, Chelsea Barracks served as an important military base for more than 140 years before being decommissioned in 2008.
    — Nick Scott, Robb Report, 22 Aug. 2026
  • The Israeli army built another five battalions of soldiers who were never engaged in service or finished their service and wish to return to duty.
    — Benjamin Weinthal, FOXNews.com, 6 July 2026
Definition of battalions
Noun
  • The Brazil international has been omitted from the squads for the Community Shield and the Coventry game on successive weekends, and looks likely to depart before next Tuesday’s deadline.
    — Andy Naylor, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Butler had 12 tackles in 12 games last season, and Cooper, undrafted out of Houston in 2025, has been on the practice squads for Detroit and Cleveland but hasn’t yet appeared in a game.
    — Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of squads
Noun
  • Biden raised troop levels there to about 100,000, backed by seven fighter squadrons, six destroyers, and roughly 100 nuclear gravity bombs.
    — JENNIFER KAVANAGH, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Marine Corps and Navy test squadrons participated alongside Kratos, Northrop Grumman, and Autonodyne.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of squadrons
Noun
  • The Phillies will run outfield platoons in left and center for the remainder of the season.
    — Matt Gelb, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Multiple schools across three states will soon have their own veritable platoons of pepper-spraying drones to hunt down active shooters, The Washington Post reports, waiting to spring into action the moment they’re called on.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 30 July 2026
Definition of platoons

Browse Nearby Words

detachment
detachments
detail
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Cite this Entry

“Detachments.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detachments. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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