Link Centre Dictionary

platoon

pla·toon

UK/pləˈtuːn/ US/plʌˈtun/ fairly common

noun

1.

a military unit that is a subdivision of a company; usually has a headquarters and two or more squads; usually commanded by a lieutenant

2.

a team of policemen working under the military platoon system

3.

a group of persons who are engaged in a common activity

  • “platoons of tourists poured out of the busses”
  • “the defensive platoon of the football team”

Origin

From obsolete French plauton, variant of peloton, from Middle French pelote + -on. Doublet of peloton. Compare pellet.

Phrases

  • platoon system

Related words

Broader terms

Parts

Part of

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.