platoon

American  

[pluh-toon] / pləˈtun /

noun

platoons plural

1. a military unit consisting of two or more squads or sections and a headquarters.

2. a small unit of a police force.

3. a company or group of persons.

   a platoon of visitors.

4. Football. a group of players specially trained in one aspect of the game, as offense or defense, and used as a unit.

   a halfback on the offensive platoon.

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verb (used with object)

1. Sports.

   1. to use (a player) at a position in a game alternately with another player or players.

   2. to alternate (two different teams or units), as separate offensive and defensive squads.

verb (used without object)

1. Sports.

   1. to alternate at a position with another player or players.

   2. to use players alternately at the same position.

   3. to alternate different teams.

platoon British  

/ pləˈtuːn /

noun

1. military a subunit of a company usually comprising three sections of ten to twelve men: commanded by a lieutenant

2. a group or unit of people, esp one sharing a common activity, characteristic, etc

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• platoons
  plural

Etymology

Origin of platoon

1630–40; earlier plotton < French peloton little ball, group, platoon, diminutive of pelote ball. See pellet, -oon

Explanation

A platoon is a military unit made up of squads. If you’re in a war zone, you might see a platoon of soldiers guarding a checkpoint. Military branches such as the army, navy, air force, or marines are broken down into smaller groups. One is a platoon, which is part of a company and made up of squads. A platoon usually has its own headquarters and is under the command of a lieutenant. In a war, platoons will be stationed in places according to strategy — the platoon might be attacking or defending. Platoon (1986) is also the name of a war movie about Vietnam.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

platoon platoons

“It would be like if I was leading a platoon of Marines but went to a hotel to sleep at night while they’re out in a foxhole,” he added.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026

“Before you can command a ship, a platoon, a flight of fighters,” he told graduates, “you must be able to command yourself.”

From Salon ● May 24, 2026

He joined the Marines and led a rifle platoon of the Third Marine Division in Vietnam, where he received a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 21, 2026

The Minneapolis-born, Princeton and Harvard graduate served as an infantry platoon leader in Guantanamo Bay and Iraq, where he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal.

From BBC ● Mar. 11, 2026

The platoon could expect support from K Company, which was scheduled to come in with the headquarters group and a heavy machine-gun platoon just behind the Third.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

And we need to think more about the little platoons, the habits, the character forming that’s required for people to navigate a world where there’s not going to be lifelong work anymore.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026

This year, mercenaries began transiting through Bosaso in Somalia, where local sources told AFP a UAE-run section of a military base has hosted platoons of uniformed foreigners, transported in cargo planes.

From Barron's ● Dec. 21, 2025

Many of us in the platoons of the federal workforce cannot afford to be dismissed, however illegal the dismissal might be.

From Slate ● Feb. 3, 2025

She made up qualifications, multiple degrees, said she had led platoons of 250 and had extracted VIPs from warzones.

From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2024

By threes and fours our class was scattered over the platoons amongst Frisian fishermen, peasants, and labourers with whom we soon made friends.

From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque

Related Words

• batch
• detachment
• patrol
• squad
• squadron