What does fleet mean?

Definitions for fleet
flitfleet

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word fleet.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. fleetnoun

    group of aircraft operating together under the same ownership

  2. fleetnoun

    group of motor vehicles operating together under the same ownership

  3. fleetnoun

    a group of steamships operating together under the same ownership

  4. fleetadjective

    a group of warships organized as a tactical unit

  5. fleet, swiftverb

    moving very fast

    "fleet of foot"; "the fleet scurrying of squirrels"; "a swift current"; "swift flight of an arrow"; "a swift runner"

  6. flit, flutter, fleet, dartverb

    move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart

    "The hummingbird flitted among the branches"

  7. evanesce, fade, blow over, pass off, fleet, passverb

    disappear gradually

    "The pain eventually passed off"

Wiktionary

  1. Fleetnoun

    The stream that ran where Fleet Street now runs.

  2. Fleetnoun

    A former prison in London, which originally stood near the stream.

  3. Etymology: From fleten, from fleotan

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Fleet, Fleot, Flot

    Etymology: Are all derived from the Saxon fleot , which signifies a bay or gulph. Edmund Gibson Camden.

  2. Fleetadjective

    Swift of pace; quick; nimble; active.

    Etymology: fliotur, Islandick.

    Upon that shore he spied Atin stand;
    There by his master left, when late he far’d
    In Phædria’s fleet bark. Fairy Queen.

    I take him for the better dog:
    ———— Thou art a fool: if Echo were as fleet,
    I would esteem him worth a dozen such. William Shakespeare.

    He had in his stables one of the fleetest horses in England. Clar.

    His fear was greater than his haste; For fear, though fleeter than the wind,
    Believes ’tis always left behind. Hudibras, p. iii. cant. 3.

    So fierce they drove, their coursers were so fleet,
    That the turf trembled underneath their feet. Dryden.

    He told us, that the welkin would be clear
    When swallows fleet soar high and sport in air. John Gay.

    Ten thousand thousand fleet ideas
    Croud fast into the mind. James Thomson, Autumn.

    Marl cope-ground is a cold, stiff, wet clay, unless where it is very fleet for pasture. John Mortimer.

    Those lands must be plowed fleet. John Mortimer, Husbandry.

  3. Fleetnoun

    A company of ships; a navy.

    Etymology: flota, Saxon.

    Our pray’rs are heard; our master’s fleet shall go
    As far as winds can bear, or waters flow. Matthew Prior.

  4. Fleetnoun

    A creek; an inlet of water. A provincial word, from which the Fleet-prison and Fleet-street are named.

    Etymology: flota, Saxon.

    They have a very good way in Essex of draining of lands that have land-floods or fleets running through them, which make a kind of a small creek. John Mortimer, Husbandry.

  5. To Fleetverb

    Who swelling sails in Caspian sea doth cross,
    And in frail wood an Adrian gulph doth fleet,
    Doth not, I ween, so many evils meet. Fairy Queen, b. ii.

    Many young gentlemen flock to him every day, and fleet the time carelesly as they did in the golden age. William Shakespeare.

  6. To Fleetverb

    Etymology: flotan, Saxon.

    How all the other passions fleet to air,
    As doubtful thoughts, and rash embrac’d despair! William Shakespeare.

    A wolf, who, hang’d for human slaughter,
    Ev’n from the gallows did his fell soul fleet. William Shakespeare.

    Our understanding, to make a complete notion, must add something else to this fleeting and unremarkable superficies, that may bring it to our acquaintance. Kenelm Digby, on Bodies.

    O fleeting joys
    Of Paradise, dear-bought with lasting woes! John Milton, P. Lost.

    While I listen to thy voice,
    Chloris! I feel my life decay:
    That powerful noise
    Calls my fleeting soul away. Edmund Waller.

    As empty clouds by rising winds are tost,
    Their fleeting forms scarce sooner found than lost. Matthew Prior.

ChatGPT

  1. fleet

    A fleet is a group of vehicles, such as ships, planes, or cars, operated by a single organization or individual for a specific purpose, often for commercial or military activities. It can also refer to moving swiftly or a group of animals.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Fleet

    to sail; to float

  2. Fleet

    to fly swiftly; to pass over quickly; to hasten; to flit as a light substance

  3. Fleet

    to slip on the whelps or the barrel of a capstan or windlass; -- said of a cable or hawser

  4. Fleetverb

    to pass over rapidly; to skin the surface of; as, a ship that fleets the gulf

  5. Fleetverb

    to hasten over; to cause to pass away lighty, or in mirth and joy

  6. Fleetverb

    to draw apart the blocks of; -- said of a tackle

  7. Fleetverb

    to cause to slip down the barrel of a capstan or windlass, as a rope or chain

  8. Fleetverb

    swift in motion; moving with velocity; light and quick in going from place to place; nimble

  9. Fleetverb

    light; superficially thin; not penetrating deep, as soil

  10. Fleetverb

    a number of vessels in company, especially war vessels; also, the collective naval force of a country, etc

  11. Fleetverb

    a flood; a creek or inlet; a bay or estuary; a river; -- obsolete, except as a place name, -- as Fleet Street in London

  12. Fleetverb

    a former prison in London, which originally stood near a stream, the Fleet (now filled up)

  13. Fleetverb

    to take the cream from; to skim

  14. Etymology: [OE. fleten, fleoten, to swim, AS. fletan to swim, float; akin to D. vlieten to flow, OS. fliotan, OHG. fliozzan, G. fliessen, Icel. fljta to float, flow, Sw. flyta, D. flyde, L. pluere to rain, Gr. plei^n to sail, swim, float, Skr. plu to swim, sail. 84. Cf. Fleet, n. & a., Float, Pluvial, Flow.]

Wikidata

  1. Fleet

    Fleet is a town and civil parish in the Hart district of Hampshire, England, located 37 miles south west of London. It is part of and is the major town ofHart District. The 2007 population forecast for Fleet was 31,687. Fleet contains the areas of Church Crookham and Elvetham Heath. In 2011, and again in 2012, Hart district, of which Fleet is the main town, was voted the best place to live in the UK by the Halifax Quality of Life study, above areas such as Elmbridge in Surrey and Wokingham in Berkshire.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Fleet

    flēt, n. a number of ships in company, esp. ships of war: a division of the navy, commanded by an admiral. [A.S. fléot, a ship—fléotan, to float; conn. with Dut. vloot, Ger. flotte.]

  2. Fleet

    flēt, adj. swift: nimble: transient: (prov.) shallow.—adjs. Fleet′-foot (Shak.), fleet or swift of foot; Fleet′ing, passing quickly: temporary.—advs. Fleet′ingly; Fleet′ly.—n. Fleet′ness. [Prob. Ice. fliótr, swift; but ult. cog. with succeeding word.]

  3. Fleet

    flēt, v.i. to flit, pass swiftly.—v.t. (Shak.) to make to pass quickly:—pr.p. fleet′ing; pa.p. fleet′ed. [A.S. fléotan, to float.]

  4. Fleet

    flēt, n. a shallow creek or bay, as in Northfleet, Fleet-ditch, &c.—The Fleet, or Fleet Prison, a London gaol down to 1842, long a place of confinement for debtors—clandestine marriages were solemnised here down to 1754 by broken-down clergymen confined for debt. [A.S. fléot, an inlet.]

Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms

  1. fleet

    An organization of ships, aircraft, Marine forces, and shore-based fleet activities all under the command of a commander or commander in chief who may exercise operational as well as administrative control. See also major fleet; numbered fleet.

Dictionary of Nautical Terms

  1. fleet

    See FLEETING.

  2. fleet

    A general name given to the royal navy. Also, any number of ships, whether designed for war or commerce, keeping in company. A fleet of ships of war is usually divided into three squadrons, and these, if numerous, are again separated into subdivisions. The admiral commands the centre, the second in command superintends the vanguard, and the third directs the rear. The term in the navy was any number exceeding a squadron, or rear-admiral's command, composed of five sail-of-the-line, with any amount of smaller vessels.

  3. fleet

    [Teut. flieffen]. The old word for float: as "we fleeted down the river with our boats;" and Shakspeare makes Antony say, "Our sever'd navy too Have knit again, and fleet, threat'ning most sea-like." Fleet is also an old term for an arm of the sea, or running water subject to the tide. Also, a bay where vessels can remain afloat. (See float.) A salt-water tide-creek.

Editors Contribution

  1. fleetnoun

    The largest group of naval vessels under one commander, organized for specific tactical or other purposes. 1.) fast and nimble in movement. 2.) a marshland creek, channel, or ditch. 3.) move or pass quickly. Fade away; be transitory.

    Numbers give many materials a fleet of names in science to create one's own chemistry.

    Etymology: Plural


    Submitted by Tehorah_Elyon on June 1, 2024  

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. FLEET

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Fleet is ranked #11322 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Fleet surname appeared 2,787 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 would have the surname Fleet.

    75.8% or 2,113 total occurrences were White.
    18.5% or 518 total occurrences were Black.
    2.3% or 66 total occurrences were of two or more races.
    1.9% or 55 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
    0.7% or 22 total occurrences were American Indian or Alaskan Native.
    0.4% or 13 total occurrences were Asian.

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'fleet' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #4625

  2. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'fleet' in Nouns Frequency: #1768

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of fleet in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of fleet in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of fleet in a Sentence

  1. Kaleo Alau:

    This surge in demand is primarily for our smaller vehicles, we realize this demand is occurring when tourists are unable to secure a rental car, or they learn that our rental fleet options are more affordable.

  2. Tom Graves:

    I am confident that the Defense Department understands JSTARS is a major priority for Congress and will complete the process of updating the JSTARS fleet in a timely manner.

  3. Andy Roberts:

    The industry is looking at its aging coal fleet and saying,' I can either fix this at great risk or move to renewables and natural gas at much lower costs,' it's kind of a no-brainer.

  4. Gerry Northwood:

    By expanding their merchant fleet, the Russians are possibly seeking to bring the heavy lift of armaments and other equipment destined for Syria under direct government control, it does afford a bit of protection - they are Russian flagged. It is likely they will put armed personnel on board and will be robust about their immediate security.

  5. Secretary Ray Mabus:

    As we welcome USS Jackson to the fleet, we are reminded of the importance of the partnership between our Navy and our nation's shipbuilding industry, we also celebrate the lasting bond this ship will share with the great people of Jackson, Mississippi, as it sails the globe, providing a presence that only our Navy and Marine Corps can maintain.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

fleet#1#6013#10000

Translations for fleet

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"fleet." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 Dec. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/fleet>.

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