expeditionary
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of expeditionary
First recorded in 1700–10; expedition + -ary
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On Friday, the Pentagon announced that an additional expeditionary unit of 2,500 Marines was being deployed to the region to support the effort.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 15, 2026
The group’s embarked Marine expeditionary unit includes more than 2,000 Marines.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026
The United States Marines are the country’s elite shock troops and an expeditionary force that specializes in amphibious assaults.
From Salon • Jun. 12, 2025
Chinese records appear to first mention the island in AD239, when an emperor dispatched an expeditionary force to it - a fact Beijing uses to back its territorial claim.
From BBC • Oct. 14, 2024
A British expeditionary force was about to sail across the English Channel and link up with French forces fighting in Belgium.
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
