Meaning and Origin
What does the name Fleet mean? Keep reading to find the user submitted meanings, dictionary definitions, and more.
User Submitted Origins
- To sail; to float.(Obs)"And in frail wood on Adrian Gulf doth fleet." [Spenser.]
- To fly swiftly; to pass over quickly; to hasten; to flit as a light substance."All the unaccomplished works of Nature's hand, . . . Dissolved on earth, fleet hither." [Milton.]
- [Naut] To slip on the whelps or the barrel of a capstan or windlass; -- said of a cable or hawser.
- [Naut] To move or change in position; -- said of persons; as, the crew fleeted aft.
Etymology: OE. fleten fleoten, to swim, AS. fleótan to swim, float; akin to D. vlieten to flow, OS. fliotan, OHG. fliozzan, G. fliessen, Icel. fljōta 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
- To pass over rapidly; to skin the surface of; as, a ship that fleets the gulf.
- To hasten over; to cause to pass away lighty, or in mirth and joy."Many young gentlemen flock to him, and fleet the time carelessly." [Shak.]
- [Naut]
- To draw apart the blocks of; -- said of a tackle.
- To cause to slip down the barrel of a capstan or windlass, as a rope or chain.
- To draw apart the blocks of; -- said of a tackle.
- [Naut] To move or change in position; used only in special phrases; as, of fleet aft the crew."We got the long “stick” . . . down and “ fleeted” aft, where it was secured." [F. T. Bullen.]
- Swift in motion; moving with velocity; light and quick in going from place to place; nimble."In mail their horses clad, yet fleet and strong." [Milton.]
- Light; superficially thin; not penetrating deep, as soil.(Prov. Eng)
Etymology: Cf. Icel. fljōtr quick. See Fleet (v. i.)
Etymology: OE. flete fleote, AS. fleót ship, fr. fleótan to float, swim. See Fleet (v. i.) and cf. Float
- A flood; a creek or inlet; a bay or estuary; a river; -- obsolete, except as a place name, -- as Fleet Street in London."Together wove we nets to entrap the fish In floods and sedgy fleets." [Matthewes.]
- A former prison in London, which originally stood near a stream, the Fleetnow filled up).
Etymology: AS. fleót a place where vessels float, bay, river; akin to D. vliet rill, brook, G. fliess. See Fleet (v. i.)
Etymology: AS. flēt cream, fr. fleótan to float. See Fleet (v. i.)
- A group of warships organized as a tactical unit
- A group of steamships operating together under the same ownership
- Group of motor vehicles operating together under the same ownership
- Group of aircraft operating together under the same ownership
- Disappear gradually
- Move along rapidly and lightly; skim or dart
- Moving very fast ("fleet of foot" and "the fleet scurrying of squirrels")
From Middle English flet, flete, from Old English flēot (“ship”)
- A group of vessels or vehicles.
- Any group of associated items.
- (nautical) A number of vessels in company, especially war vessels; also, the collective naval force of a country, etc.
- (nautical, British Royal Navy) Any command of vessels exceeding a squadron in size, or a rear-admiral's command, composed of five sail-of-the-line, with any number of smaller vessels.
From Middle English flet, flete, from Old English flēot (“river, estuary”)
- (obsolete) A flood; a creek or inlet, a bay or estuary, a river subject to the tide. cognate to Low German fleet
- (nautical) A location, as on a navigable river, where barges are secured.
From Middle English fleten (“float”), from Old English flēotan (“float”)