ECHELON • E-FREE TRANSLATION.COM • Definition of Echelon

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noun

Echelon n.

(Mil.) An arrangement of a body of troops when its divisions are drawn up in parallel lines each to the right or the left of the one in advance of it, like the steps of a ladder in position for climbing. Also used adjectively; as, echelon distance.

(Naval) An arrangement of a fleet in a wedge or V form.

Echelon lens (Optics), a large lens constructed in several parts or layers, extending in a succession of annular rings beyond the central lens; used in lighthouses.

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Etymology of 'Echelon'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Echelon" Quotes from Famous Books

... formed in echelon, by columns of fours, refused the left, and retired in great style on the double-quick. I was enchanted, ...

— The $30,000 Bequest and Other Stories • Mark Twain

... ran the whole line of our trenches. Along the whole length of this line the business of taking over from the old battalion was being enacted. That old battalion made a good bargain when they handed over that lot of slots to us. The trenches lay in a sort of echelon formation, the one on the extreme right being the most advanced. This one we made for, and as we squelched across the mud to it a couple of German star shells fizzed up into the air and illuminated ...

— Bullets & Billets • Bruce Bairnsfather

... neither does he bow down and worship the little tin gods the Army Council set up. But instead, as one by one the formations he used to know are culled from the manual, he watches the new formations with a passive eye and reserves his choleric criticisms for the old reliables' "Echelon to the right" and that maximum of military perfection the ...

— From the St. Lawrence to the Yser with the 1st Canadian brigade • Frederic C. Curry

... Headquarters of General Joffre (French Commander-in-Chief) at 12. They are at Vitry-le-Francois. He quite realises the importance and value of adopting a waiting attitude. In the event of a forward movement by the German Corps in the Ardennes and Luxemburg, he is anxious that I should act in echelon on the left of the 5th French Army, whose present disposition I have stated above. The French Cavalry Corps now north of the Sambre will operate on my left front and keep ...

— 1914 • John French, Viscount of Ypres

... was made in echelon of battalions, and columns, and was hardy in the extreme. It was growing dark as the attack began, and Hays's and Hoke's brigades (says Early) were thrown into some confusion by coming in contact, after they crossed the plank road, below Guest's house. Barksdale remained ...

— The Campaign of Chancellorsville • Theodore A. Dodge

... direction, a most complete strategy and system of formations have been worked out. In this way the various types of planes operate in different air strata according to their missions, the upper planes echelon somewhat behind those below on the order of a flight of steps facing the enemy. This system provides a quick method of reception of an attack and the assurance of quick support, no matter where the attack may come. ...

— Opportunities in Aviation • Arthur Sweetser

Words linked to "Echelon" : military group, force, grating, military force, armed forces, military unit, military, war machine, diffraction grating, armed services