brigade

American  

[bri-geyd] / brɪˈgeɪd /

noun

brigades plural

1. a military unit having its own headquarters and consisting of two or more regiments, squadrons, groups, or battalions.

2. a large body of troops.

3. Digital Technology. cybermob.

4. a group of individuals organized for a particular purpose: a rescue brigade.

   a fire brigade;

   a rescue brigade.

5. bucket brigade.

6. History/Historical. a convoy of canoes, sleds, wagons, or pack animals, especially as used to supply trappers in the 18th- and 19th-century Canadian and U.S. fur trade.

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verb (used with object)

brigaded, brigading

1. to form into a brigade.

2. to group together.

verb (used with or without object)

brigaded, brigading

1. Digital Technology. to engage in online brigading.

brigade British  

/ brɪˈɡeɪd /

noun

1. a formation of fighting units, together with support arms and services, smaller than a division and usually commanded by a brigadier

2. a group of people organized for a certain task

   a rescue brigade

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verb

1. to organize into a brigade

2. to put or group together

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subbrigade
  noun
• interbrigade
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• brigades
  plural

Etymology

Origin of brigade

First recorded in 1630–40; from French, from Old Italian brigata “company of soldiers,” originally “group, band,” equivalent to brig(are) probably “to associate (with), be together” (obsolete sense), probably of Celtic origin; see brigand + -ata -ade ¹

Explanation

A brigade is a unit of the army. A bunch of brigades make up a division, while brigades are divided into battalions and regiments. The military is nothing if not organized, and one of the forms of organization is the brigade. A brigade is smaller than a division, but larger than a battalion or regiment, several of which make up a brigade. A colonel or brigadier general will command a brigade, which consists of several units, including one at headquarters, one infantry unit, plus support staff. Soldiers in the same brigade will work together closely. Veterans will remember their brigade comrades.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

brigade brigades brigaded brigading

The commander of Ukraine's scandal-hit "Anne of Kyiv" army brigade has been arrested as part of a murder probe, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday.

From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026

The fire brigade has advised people in the area to keep their windows and doors closed due to the significant amount of smoke produced by the fire.

From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026

In May, Hegseth abruptly canceled the nine-month rotation of an armored brigade to Poland from Fort Hood, Texas.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026

A Spanish brigade also arrived with a crane to begin removing rubble.

From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026

“What brigade are you?” an officer called out.

From "A Farewell To Arms" by Ernest Hemingway

And on the opposite bank, giant murals pay tribute to Ukrainian brigades fighting at the front.

From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026

Several Ukrainian brigades said that they use the traditional sniper less.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026

We were wearing matching unit hats: We served in different brigades within the same infantry division.

From Slate ● Apr. 1, 2026

The deployment of medical brigades abroad is Cuba's main source of foreign currency, generating $7 billion in 2025, according to official figures.

From Barron's ● Feb. 18, 2026

Behind her followed nine bands, four mounted brigades, more than twenty floats, and more than five thousand marchers.

From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler

This is a useful corrective for people who are being brigaded by Twitter trolls: Would you still be worried if a crowd of folks in a town you’ll never visit was booing your name?

From Washington Post ● Aug. 9, 2022

In many cases, it appeared that a post from one user would get shared by a friend into his or her network, where it would be brigaded by strangers.

From New York Times ● Nov. 24, 2020

He calls for civil servants outside London to "be brigaded into local growth teams".

From The Guardian ● Nov. 9, 2012

While the idea of civil servants being "brigaded" to march in step to the localist tune is an entertaining notion, it will not liberate the power of local economies.

From The Guardian ● Nov. 9, 2012

This regiment was brigaded with the 7th, 8th, and 9th United States Colored Troops, forming with other colored regiments a division of the 10th Army Corps.

From The Black Phalanx African American soldiers in the War of Independence, the War of 1812, and the Civil War by Wilson, Joseph T. (Joseph Thomas)

What counts as sufficient coordination for a campaign to qualify as brigading?

From Washington Post ● Dec. 23, 2021

Facebook said that such coordinated campaigns, known as brigading, are a new area that the company is starting to police.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 1, 2021

So apparently YouTube doesn't understand how brigading works or why impact matters more than intent.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 5, 2019

There are almost ceaseless allegations, on both sides, of harassment, brigading, astroturfing and sock puppetry: terms that describe coordinated, oppositional online campaigns, the feigned impression of grassroots support and fake online identities.

From Washington Post ● May 5, 2016

In brigading the poor we should be careful to make the best use of this knowledge by putting each as much as possible to the trade with which he was most familiar.

From Darkest India A Supplement to General Booth's "In Darkest England, and the Way Out" by Booth-Tucker, Commissioner