naval division
- noun
- /ˈneɪvəl dɪˈvɪʒən/
- Specialized
:
división naval
- The naval division conducted a series of training exercises in the open sea.
Examples
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During the conflict, the naval division was deployed to secure the coastal waters.
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The success of the operation relied heavily on the coordination of the naval division.
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The New Zealand and 63rd (Royal Naval) divisions were the other two.
Academic text (2010)
Synonyms
347
5.1
A large unit in the army, air force or navy
14
7.3
A group of small boats that work together
8
6.3
A group of navy ships sent from the fleet for a mission
2
5.0
A group of military ships organized to fight together
1
4.2
A ship or group of ships that a navy uses for military work
How Big
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'naval' = related to the navy and 'division' = a military unit, so 'naval division' straightforwardly denotes a navy unit of ships. This adjectival + noun military construction is common cross-linguistically and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.
Etymology
Naval division comes from a simple picture: the word naval means military ships and division means a part of a larger group, so a naval division is a small group of similar ships that sail and work together. That's why it means 'a group of warships forming a unit'.