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🌍 A rapid force 🪖 A combat unit
battle group

battle group

5 4.7
A group of troops from different countries ready to move quickly to a crisis
  • noun
  • /ˈbætəl ɡruːp/
  • Specialized
translation icon : grupo de batalla
  • Thank you to Estonia for hosting our battle group so well and being such a staunch NATO ally.
  • carrier battle group

Thank you to Estonia for hosting our battle group so well and being such a staunch NATO ally.

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Examples

  • Clinton ordered two U.S. battle groups into the area as a precaution against a Chinese invasion.

  • The British Army leads the NATO battle group in Estonia.

  • Right now, we have two Carrier battle groups in the Gulf all the time doing missions that could be done by smaller platforms.

    Blog text (34)

  • Washington must support the programs underway to modernize U.S. carrier battle groups.

    Academic text (2001)

  • The United States has recently dispatched the USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier battle group to patrol the waters of Iran's vicinity.

    Academic text (2007)

  • The British Army leads the NATO battle group in Estonia.

  • The U.S.S. Coral Sea is a member of a battle group in the Gulf enforcing the no-fly zone.

Synonyms

military force
vsbattle group
156 3.2

A group of soldiers organized to protect or fight for a country

is multinational and tailored for quick crisis operations rather than national service
military unit
vsbattle group
15 2.8

A group of soldiers that does a specific task

is multinational and set up for rapid crisis deployment
military group
vsbattle group
2 3.1

A unit of soldiers organized to do a specific job for the armed forces

is multinational and focused on fast crisis management
military formation
vsbattle group
1 4.8

A group of soldiers who move in a set pattern to fight

is organized for rapid multinational deployment and crisis response

How International

battle group
  • Specialized
5 4.7
coalition
525 4.3
bilateral
54 6.0
military unit
15 2.8

Surface Forms

battle group singular
battle groups plural

Morphology

battle + group

The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'battle' (a fight) with 'group' (a number of people seen as a unit): a group formed for battle or military action. Although the term has a specific institutional use (e.g., NATO deployment), the basic compositional sense is clear and cross‑linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words would likely infer its meaning.

Etymology

Battle group used by NATO and the EU comes from the image of a group of soldiers from several countries kept ready to move quickly into a crisis, a compact team with its own medical and supply help. That's why it means 'a multinational force for rapid deployment'.