battleship

American  

[bat-l-ship] / ˈbæt lˌʃɪp /

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.

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battleship British  

/ 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

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Etymology

Origin of battleship

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

Compare meaning

How does battleship compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• dreadnought vs. battleship

Explanation

A battleship is a very large, seagoing military vessel. A battleship is prepared for war, being protected by heavy armor and equipped with guns. Today's modern military doesn't often use battleships — you're more likely to find a battleship in a harbor being explored by tourists. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, battleships were the most modern, powerful kind of boat on the water, and they were used during both World Wars by various countries' navies. The game Battleship, which shares a name with these warships, has been around in one form or another since the 1930s.

Example Sentences

Navy officials have said the new battleship would be armed with unproven next-generation weapons including lasers and rail guns, which are weapons that use electricity to fire a projectile instead of gunpowder.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026

“I think we’re trying to understand all the proper trade offs, and then think about it as a battleship strike group and a carrier strike group.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026

Navy decommissioned its last battleship in 1992, after the military recognized that battleships had become sitting ducks, vulnerable to modern military munitions that could pick off the vessel from the sky.

From Salon • May 8, 2026

Her comments come as the US moves a second battleship into the region, and one day after progress was reported at US-Iran talks in Switzerland.

From BBC • Feb. 18, 2026

And yet she had been the first English battleship to have gunports and to mount complete batteries of siege artillery—a really key ship in the development process at a time of rapid technological change.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler