ECHELON

I. noun Etymology: French échelon, literally, rung of a ladder, from Old French eschelon, from eschele ladder, from Late Latin scala Date: 1796 1. a. an arrangement of a body of troops with its units each somewhat to the left or right of the one in the rear like a series of steps, a formation of units or individuals resembling such an ~ , a flight formation in which each airplane flies at a certain elevation above or below and at a certain distance behind and to the right or left of the airplane ahead, any of several military units in ~ formation, 2. one of a series of levels or grades in an organization or field of activity , a group of individuals at a particular level or grade in an organization , II. verb Date: circa 1860 transitive verb to form or arrange in an ~, intransitive verb to take position in an ~