From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Battalion \Bat*tal"ion\ (b[a^]t*t[a^]l"y[u^]n; 106), noun [F. bataillon, fr. It. battaglione. See {Battalia}.]
1. A body of troops; esp. a body of troops or an army in battle array. [archaic] ''The whole battalion views.'' --Milton. [1913 Webster +PJC]
2. (Mil.) An infantry command of two or more companies, which is the tactical unit of the infantry, or the smallest command which is self-supporting upon the battlefield, and also the unit in which the strength of the infantry of an army is expressed.
Note: In the United States army, since April 29, 1898, a battalion consists of four companies, and three battalions form a regiment. The term is also applied to two or more batteries of artillery combined into a single command. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Battalion \Bat*tal"ion\, verb (used with an object) To form into battalions. [R.]
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
noun
1: an army unit usually consisting of a headquarters and three or more companies
2: a large indefinite number; "a battalion of ants"; "a multitude of TV antennas"; "a plurality of religions" [syn: {large number}, {multitude}, {plurality}, {pack}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
75 Moby Thesaurus words for "battalion": KP, age group, army, army group, band, battery, battle group, bevy, body, brigade, bunch, cabal, cadre, cast, clique, cohort, column, combat command, combat team, company, complement, contingent, corps, coterie, covey, crew, crowd, detachment, detail, division, faction, field army, field train, file, fleet, flying column, gang, garrison, group, grouping, groupment, in-group, junta, kitchen police, legion, maniple, mob, movement, organization, out-group, outfit, pack, party, peer group, phalanx, platoon, posse, rank, regiment, salon, section, set, squad, squadron, stable, string, tactical unit, task force, team, train, tribe, troop, troupe, unit, wing
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