the arrangement of military troops prepared for battle
2.
a body of military troops prepared for battle
battalia in American English
(bəˈteiljə, -ˈtɑːl-)
noun obsolete
1.
order of battle
2.
an armed or arrayed body of troops
Word origin
[1585–95; ‹ It battaglia body of troops, battle1]This word is first recorded in the period 1585–95. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: aberration, naturalize, parallax, sine, switch