battle cruiser

American  

noun

1. a warship of maximum speed and firepower, but with lighter armor than a battleship.

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battle cruiser British  

noun

1. a warship of battleship size but with lighter armour and fewer guns and capable of high speed

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Etymology

Origin of battle cruiser

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

His first ship was the Grafton, a Royal Navy battle cruiser that served in World War I. Scruffy handwriting made the logbooks hard to read, but Purves was hooked.

From Reuters • Dec. 11, 2019

That opening scene with the imperial battle cruiser coming out of the top of the screen was absolutely mind-bending.

From The Guardian • Oct. 22, 2018

It is accompanied by the Peter the Great, a massive battle cruiser, with a fearsome array of missiles, but which are designed to hit planes, ships and submarines rather than attack land targets.

From The Guardian • Nov. 4, 2016

In July 1945, XE1 and XE3 sank the Japanese battle cruiser Takao.

From BBC • Sep. 21, 2013

Reeking gasses filled every cranny of circumambient space as what was left of Roger's battle cruiser began the long plunge to the ground.

From Triplanetary by Smith, E. E. (Edward Elmer)