Meaning & use

sortie

noun·Advanced

A brief military operation launched from a fortified position, especially by aircraft.

See it in a sentence

The pilots flew three sorties over the mountains before returning to base.

The troops planned a quick sortie to gather intelligence before dawn.

A note on using this word

"Sortie" has broadened beyond the military to describe any brief, purposeful outing, as in "a sortie to the local market."

Words with a similar meaning

raidmissionforay

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

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