fleet
UK[fliːt]US[fliːt]
n
A group of ships sailing together, especially warships, or all the ships in a country's navy.
n
A number of vehicles, aircraft, or other machines operating together or under the same ownership.
adj
(literary) Fast and nimble in movement.
Etymology
The word 'fleet' originates from the Old English 'flēot', meaning a ship or a place for ships to float, which is related to the verb 'flēotan' meaning 'to float'. This Old English root can be traced back to the Proto-Germanic 'fleutą' (ship, raft) and the Proto-Indo-European root 'pleud-', meaning 'to flow'. The semantic journey from the concept of 'floating' to a group of ships is direct. The adjectival sense of 'swift', which emerged in the 16th century, likely evolved from the swift, gliding motion of a ship through water, metaphorically transferring the quality of speed to other moving things.
Analysis
The word 'fleet' is a simplex word derived from Old English. It does not contain separable, meaningful morphemes within its modern English spelling.
Examples
The fishing fleet returned to harbor before the storm.
The company manages a large fleet of delivery vans.
She is fleet of foot, easily outpacing her competitors.