galleon

noun

gal·​le·​on ˈga-lē-ən How to pronounce galleon (audio)
Synonyms of galleonnext
: a heavy square-rigged sailing ship of the 15th to early 18th centuries used for war or commerce especially by the Spanish

Illustration of galleon

Illustration of galleon

Examples of galleon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Throughout it there are forts, full-size wooden galleons and signs hung on what appear to be Persian rugs. — Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025 Back in its heyday as Europe's biggest medieval shipyard, the Arsenale could churn out a galleon per day. — Julia Buckley, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Feb. 2026 Colombian researchers located the galleon in 2015, leading to legal and diplomatic disputes. — CBS News, 21 Nov. 2025 The Spanish, who had at first just flitted along the coast in their galleons, had begun marching inland and overland from Mexico with crosses and soldiers and soldiers’ families. — Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for galleon

Word History

Etymology

probably borrowed from Italian galeone, galione (later reinforced by Spanish galeón, probably borrowed from Italian), from galea galley + -one, augmentative suffix

First Known Use

1529, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of galleon was in 1529

Browse Nearby Words

Gallegos Freire
galleon
galleria
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Galleon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/galleon. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Kids Definition

galleon

noun
gal·​le·​on ˈgal-ē-ən How to pronounce galleon (audio)
: a large sailing ship with square sails used from the 1400s to the 1700s especially by the Spanish

More from Merriam-Webster on galleon

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for galleon

Nglish: Translation of galleon for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about galleon

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