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• fleet
  fleet

  noun

  the largest organized unit of naval ships grouped for tactical or other purposes.
• Fleet
  Fleet

  noun

  a stream that formerly ran into the Thames between Ludgate Hill and Fleet Street and is now a covered sewer

fleet

¹ American  

[fleet] / flit /

noun

1. the largest organized unit of naval ships grouped for tactical or other purposes.

2. the largest organization of warships under the command of a single officer.

3. a number of naval vessels or vessels carrying armed crew members.

4. a large group of ships, airplanes, trucks, etc., operated by a single company or under the same ownership.

   He owns a fleet of cabs.

5. a large group of airplanes, automobiles, etc., moving or operating together.

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fleet ² American  

[fleet] / flit /

adjective

fleeter, fleetest

1. swift; rapid.

   to be fleet of foot;

   a fleet horse.

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verb (used without object)

• fleets,
  present (3rd person singular)
• fleeted,
  past participle,  past
• fleeting
  present participle

1. to move swiftly; fly.

2. Nautical. to change position; shift.

3. Archaic.

   1. to glide along like a stream.

   2. to fade; vanish.

4. Obsolete. to float; drift; swim.

verb (used with object)

• fleets,
  present (3rd person singular)
• fleeted,
  past participle,  past
• fleeting
  present participle

1. to cause (time) to pass lightly or swiftly.

   Synonyms:

   beguile, hasten, speed

2. Nautical.

   1. to move or change the position of.

   2. to separate the blocks of (a tackle).

   3. to lay (a rope) along a deck.

fleet ³ American  

[fleet] / flit /

noun

British Dialect.

1. an arm of the sea; inlet.

2. a creek; stream; watercourse.

3. the Fleet, a former prison in London, long used for debtors.

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fleet ¹ British  

/ fliːt /

adjective

1. rapid in movement; swift

2. poetic fleeting; transient

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verb

1. (intr) to move rapidly

2. archaic (intr) to fade away smoothly; glide

3. (tr) nautical

   1. to change the position of (a hawser)

   2. to pass (a messenger or lead) to a hawser from a winch for hauling in

   3. to spread apart (the blocks of a tackle)

4. obsolete (intr) to float or swim

5. obsolete (tr) to cause (time) to pass rapidly

fleet ² British  

/ fliːt /

noun

1. a number of warships organized as a tactical unit

2. all the warships of a nation

3. a number of aircraft, ships, buses, etc, operating together or under the same ownership

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Fleet ³ British  

/ fliːt /

noun

1. a stream that formerly ran into the Thames between Ludgate Hill and Fleet Street and is now a covered sewer

2. Also called: Fleet Prison.  (formerly) a London prison, esp used for holding debtors

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fleet ⁴ British  

/ fliːt /

noun

1. a small coastal inlet; creek

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• fleetness
  noun
• fleetly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• fleeting
  present
• fleeted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• fleet
  simple
• fleets
  simple
• have fleeted
  perfect
• has fleeted
  perfect
• am fleeting
  progressive
• are fleeting
  progressive
• is fleeting
  progressive
• have been fleeting
  perfect progressive
• has been fleeting
  perfect progressive

Past

• fleeted
  simple
• had fleeted
  perfect
• was fleeting
  progressive
• were fleeting
  progressive
• had been fleeting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will fleet
  simple
• will have fleeted
  perfect
• will be fleeting
  progressive
• will have been fleeting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of fleet¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English flete, fleot(e), Old English flēot “bay, estuary; boat,” derivative of flēotan float ( def. ); cf. fleet ²

Origin of fleet²

First recorded in 1520–30; probably from or akin to Old Norse fljótr “quick, speedy”

Origin of fleet³

First recorded before 900; Middle English flete, Old English flēot “flowing water”; cognate with German Fliess “brook”; fleet ³ def. 3 is so called after the Fleet a stream, later covered and used as a sewer, near which the prison was located; fleet ¹ ( def. )

Explanation

A fleet is usually a large group of ships, but it can be any group of vessels like planes or cars that operate as a unit. A naval fleet is the largest formation of warships. A naval fleet at sea is like an army on land. One meaning of fleet comes from the Old English fleot, meaning “ship,” “raft,” or “floating vessel.” Although a fleet is usually a group of ships or airplanes operating under the same ownership, any group of vessels sailing together can be called a fleet, even you and your friends in a fleet of kayaks. Another meaning of fleet originates in the Old English flēotan, which means “moving swiftly.” When it’s used in that way, it’s usually in the -ing form, fleeting.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fleet Fleet fleeter fleetest fleets fleeted fleeting

One of the affected aircraft from Air Corsica’s fleet is currently with ATR at its facilities in Toulouse, France, where the manufacturer is running tests to identify the source of the reported fumes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

That year, Dans said on Substack that he was the “first American” to launch an effort to buy the Helsinki Shipyard in Finland, where about half the global icebreaker fleet was built.

From Salon ● Sep. 16, 2026

In the lawsuit, he blames Metrolink’s improper care of its aging fleet of trains for several incidents.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026

In an operation with a degree of military precision, the small fleet of lorries departed for Dover just after sunrise, where the men staged an intimidating show of strength near the port.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

Mrs. March’s warning was evidently thrown away, for five minutes later Laurie tore by the window on his own fleet horse, riding as if for his life.

From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott

While the 2030 Games in the French Alps await, Frankel is minding the net for the Boston Fleet in the Professional Women’s Hockey League.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026

Fleet operators acknowledged that some drivers have been apprehensive to make the leap to zero-emission trucks because the technology is new and charging can be a challenge.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026

Central Command headquarters, some in the Navy’s 5th Fleet in Bahrain, some on each ship.

From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026

Fleet described it as the "bravest thing I've ever done" and offered her support to her successor.

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026

That night the ships of the Iron Fleet numbered sixty.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

A new director, Warren Carlyle, has streamlined the show, shaving 20 minutes of running time through a combination of textual cuts and fleeter scenic design choices.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 28, 2023

Trio of bear cubs, and fleeter than birds, Russell and Baez and Riz.

From New York Times ● Oct. 22, 2016

Something kind of similar is happening in the fleeter, more escapist Arrow and The Flash, two ongoing series on the CW based on DC Comics characters.

From Slate ● Mar. 9, 2015

Tendulkar, still fleeter of foot than some of his peers, was the man in fruitless pursuit.

From The Guardian ● Jul. 21, 2011

But the Fans were fleeter of foot than he; at every stride they gained upon him, and in the end he was overtaken.

From The Fire-Gods A Tale of the Congo by Charles Gilson

Utah also plays at the sixth-slowest pace in the league, in part because Gobert is a dominant half-court defender who isn’t the fleetest of foot end to end.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 13, 2020

The stagecraft by which customers who just a minute ago were getting the closest of shaves are removed isn’t the fleetest.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 29, 2019

Calderon, whose contract runs through next season, has never been the fleetest afoot, and his defense has not aged well.

From New York Times ● Jan. 28, 2016

"I'm not the fleetest of foot but I was just fast enough to get there."

From Reuters ● Oct. 16, 2015

Master M'Grath, old Ireland's pride, The fleetest Saxon dogs defied, Alike to run with him or kill: His legs, once limber, now are still.

From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 62, January 1, 1872 by Various

A safer way to play nuclear is to buy shares of large, profitable utilities with reactor fleets such as Constellation Energy or NRG Energy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

Thousands of Bombardier aircraft currently operate in US airlines' domestic fleets.

From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026

Mom-and-pop businesses, such as small trucking fleets or family farms, are hit harder.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

Kodiak’s “virtual driver” system, which is designed to be integrated across fleets, logged more than 40,000 paid driverless hours across 35 trucks during the second quarter.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

Savvy operators within these organizations diverted trucks and colluded with smugglers to import fleets of secondhand cars, vans, and buses from China.

From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden

Another day of hiding and a night of journey had fleeted by.

From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien

"Even as I stood with raptured eye, Absorbed in bliss so deep and dear, My hour of rest had fleeted by, And back came labour, bondage, care."

From Emily Brontë by A. Mary F. (Agnes Mary Frances) Robinson

“I had rather count on Aunt,” said Flora, with one of her rare and adorable smiles, which fleeted as it came.

From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 20 (of 25) by Robert Louis Stevenson

There had fleeted the happiest hours of her life.

From The Joy of Captain Ribot by Armando Palacio Vald?s

The expression of indecision still fleeted across his face; he seemed as if weighing his thoughts in the balance, and the considerations he was revolving left him still silent.

From The House of Souls by Arthur Machen

That’s simply no way to live, and it’s certainly not a way to enjoy a movie as anything deeper or more important than a fleeting experience.

From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2026

A winning percentage short of 60% over nearly four years in charge and only fleeting success in implementing a more ambitious, expansive gameplan leaves little goodwill to fall back on.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

Yet any tarnish to the U.S.’s standing could be fleeting.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 6, 2026

Then come the notions and hardware, like earring posts, beads and crystal accents, that complete the transformation from fleeting flora to lasting adornment.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

That feeling lasts only a fleeting second, though, because in the next, I wonder if David can hear my stomach churn.

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed

Related Words

• armada
• flotilla
• navy
• squadron