frigate

views updated May 14 2018

frig·ate / ˈfrigit/ • n. a warship with a mixed armament, generally heavier than a destroyer (in the U.S. Navy) and of a kind originally introduced for convoy escort work. ∎ hist. a sailing warship of a size and armament just below that of a ship of the line.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

frigate

views updated May 11 2018

frigate (orig.) light swift vessel (later variously applied). XVI. — F. frégate — It. fregata, of unkn. orig.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

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