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In the 17th–19th centuries, a frigate was a three-masted, fully rigged sailing ship, often carrying 30–40 guns in all. Smaller and faster than ships of the line (the principal vessels of naval warfare), frigates served as scouts or as escorts protecting merchant convoys; they also cruised the seas as merchant raiders themselves. In World War II, Britain revived the term frigate using it to describe escort ships equipped with sonar and depth charges, and used these ships to guard convoys from submarines. In the postwar decades, the frigate also adopted an antiaircraft role, adding radar and surface-to-air missiles. Modern frigates can sail at a speed of 30 knots and carry a crew of 200.
Examples of frigate in a Sentence
Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 2 Dec. 2024
Officials: High sea wave caused boat to capsize Hanafi said some survivors were airlifted from the site to be treated for unspecified injuries, while others were assisted on rescue vessels until a military frigate arrived to transport them back to shore.
—Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 25 Nov. 2024
The hull of the frigate rose like a wall in front of them.
—Brendan Quinn, The Athletic, 1 July 2024
The Russian Federation's Navy Admiral Gorshkov frigate arrives at Havana's port on June 24, 2019.
—CBS News, 6 June 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Frigate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/frigate. Accessed 5 Jan. 2025.
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frigate
noun
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