battleship

[bat-l-ship]

noun

1. any of a class of warships that are the most heavily armored and are equipped with the most powerful armament.

2. ship of the line.

battleship

/ ˈbætəlˌʃɪp /

noun

1. a heavily armoured warship of the largest type having many large-calibre guns

2. (formerly) a warship of sufficient size and armament to take her place in the line of battle; ship of the line

Word History and Origins

Origin of battleship¹

An Americanism dating back to 1785–95; battle ¹ + ship ¹

Example Sentences

The company’s clocks could once be found on Navy battleships during World War II, and adorned mantels, walls and desks at the White House for presidents ranging from Dwight Eisenhower to Joe Biden.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Ever since, he’s been skidding down the alphabet, saving even more daughters, wives, girlfriends, sons, grandsons and other people’s families, as well as a train, a mine, a battleship, an airplane and a pub.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

In 1919, Long Beach became the home port for the nation’s Pacific fleet of battleships, and in time, more ships followed.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“The console looks like it’s from a battleship, and we let students record on it and see how hard it is compared to today’s digital audio workstations,” Camuso explained.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

"They just need to send a small battleship to travel down the Greenland coast and send a polite letter to Denmark," he said, only partly in jest.

Read more on BBC