fleet

Everyday

1. A group of ships, especially navy ships, that sail together. tree →
2. A group of buses, taxis, planes or lorries owned by one company: a fleet of taxis. tree →
3. (adjective, literary) Fast and light on your feet: fleet of foot. tree →

In the lessons

In history fleets of ships fought and explored; in everyday life a company has a fleet of vans; in maths problems a fleet has a number of vehicles, each carrying a number of people. Phrases: «a fleet of ships», «a fleet of buses», «fleet-footed», «fishing fleet».

Examples

• The fleet sailed out of the harbour. tree →
• The bus company has a fleet of 40 buses. tree →
• A fishing fleet came back with full nets. tree →
• The school hired a fleet of coaches for the trip. tree →
• If each of the 5 buses in the fleet carries 50 people, the fleet carries 250. tree →
• The deer was fleet of foot. tree →
• He assembled his fleet and all the seamen, and set out. tree →

Note

A fleet is a group noun: «a fleet of ships». In maths, fleet total = number of vehicles × how many each holds. Not the same as «flight» (a group of birds or a plane journey).