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Meaning of brigade in English:

brigade

Pronunciation /brɪˈɡeɪd/

See synonyms for brigade

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noun

  • 1A subdivision of an army, typically consisting of a small number of infantry battalions and/or other units and forming part of a division.

    ‘he commanded a brigade of 3,000 men’
    • ‘By 1921, Conner was a 47-year-old brigadier general preparing for his first command of an infantry brigade.’
    • ‘A disturbing trend involving named areas of interest continues to recur at the infantry battalions and brigades.’
    • ‘He has commanded airborne infantry units at the company, battalion, brigade and division levels.’
    • ‘This will consist of three infantry battalions and a brigade headquarters that will remain based at An Numaniyah.’
    • ‘In time, Stryker brigades could replace two of the 1st Infantry Division's heavy brigades.’
    • ‘When needed, the marines gather together enough battalions and brigades to form a division and that's that.’
    • ‘The Army's traditional brigade, division, corps, and ASCC structure also is being reviewed.’
    • ‘This was necessary should the division go into combat side by side with conventional Army brigades and divisions.’
    • ‘Most Army National Guard maneuver brigades could also be assigned division lineages.’
    • ‘Reorganizing the Army to make the brigade the basic combat unit, however, begs the issue of adequate sustainment.’
    • ‘Two to five battalions form a brigade, which is commanded by a colonel and has from 3,000 to 5,000 soldiers.’
    • ‘He has held key staff positions with troops at the battalion, brigade and division levels.’
    • ‘The Army will soon have three distinct types of brigades, heavy, infantry, and Stryker.’
    • ‘The way ahead is light infantry and brigades and the larger army.’
    • ‘The second echelon was comprised of an armored division and a corps army aviation brigade.’
    • ‘This year, 24 of the Army's 33 active brigades were deployed for at least some period of time overseas.’
    • ‘Small brigades force the Army to retain nearly all its division and corps structure.’
    • ‘I was very impressed with the other battalion commanders in the brigade.’
    • ‘We can't just do this because our battalion or our brigade or our division is out here fighting.’
    • ‘Six airborne-qualified light brigades would be similarly organized but with lighter vehicles.’
    unit, contingent, battalion, regiment, garrison, division, squadron, company, platoon, section, detachment, legion, corps, troop
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    1. 1.1An organization with a military or quasi-military structure.
      ‘a volunteer ambulance brigade’
      • ‘Reindeer became the property of collective farms, and herders were organized into brigades (working teams).’
      • ‘Pete Brown, the village fire chief, organized the all-girl brigade as men and teen-age boys drifted away.’
      • ‘And we currently have teams of 50 or so working with each of the special police brigades.’
      • ‘At the brigade level, logistics organizations, called support battalions, provide additional logistics.’
      • ‘‘You've performed exceptionally well with the brigade in your school,’ the sergeant continued.’
      • ‘We should have had the St John Ambulance brigade giving us tea and thermal blankets.’
      • ‘Surprisingly, there was no police brigade around him; not even a personal gunman.’
      • ‘She stood up and walked around, and for the first time since she encountered the whole rescuing brigade, sang.’
    2. 1.2informal, derogatory A group of people with a characteristic in common.
      • ‘the anti-smoking brigade’
      • ‘The Blue-Rinse brigade came out in force for the sellout show.’
      • ‘Hearing was out of the question, due to the shrieks of the band's bobbysoxer brigade.’
      • ‘But character stands neglected in Bollywood's fear brigade.’
      • ‘It's Christmas time, and there is a need to be afraid: the sanctimonious charity brigade is back.’
      • ‘Every - every night he and his - he and his friends kind of organized a little brigade.’
      • ‘At least, now the secretary brigade will have a new face to moon over.’
      • ‘Thus at a more discursive level, the brigade aims to change public perceptions of menstruation.’
      • ‘How the PC brigade is destroying our orchestras’
      • ‘I'm sure the brown-suit brigade that runs the department told you it was their idea.’
      • ‘When the complete brigade emerge in full drag from their dressing rooms, they look quite the motley crew.’
      • ‘The tittle-tattle brigade is laughing all the way to the latest social do.’
      • ‘Yet, as consumers, this diaper-free brigade wields considerable financial clout.’
      • ‘Invariably the super size brigade will leap up and tell me that it's people like me that cause anorexia in girls.’
      • ‘But partly it's because people are terrified to take on the precautionary principle brigade.’
      • ‘The public scare resulted from technologies developed before the anti-GM foods brigade learned about them.’
      • ‘The traffic-light sales brigade comes into action.’
      • ‘No doubt he will be reviled by the race-relations brigade.’
      squad, team, group, band, party, body, crew, force, outfit, section
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verb

[with object]

  • 1rare Form into a brigade.

    ‘the militia, which was brigaded with regular formations to improve its training’
    • ‘After periods of training, the 12th brigaded with the 13th, 14th and 16th Regiments.’
    • ‘He was fascinated with the Volunteer Infantry, which was brigaded with his own.’
    • ‘Two divisions were sent to France, although one lacked artillery and was brigaded with the French.’
    • ‘During the changes during the spring of 1864, the 82nd was brigaded with the 26th Wisconsin.’
    • ‘The Army attaches battalions to brigade and for training purposes.’
    1. 1.1Associate with (someone or something)
      ‘they thought the speech too closely brigaded with illegal action’
      • ‘Conflict has been a banner behind which a large number of disparate discontents have been brigaded.’

Origin

Mid 17th century from French, from Italian brigata ‘company’, from brigare ‘contend’, from briga ‘strife’.