noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈpɛlətɒn/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
General-American:/ˌpɛləˈtɑn/
rhymes with (GA pronunciation) -ɒn
1
noun
Meaning 1
A group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders; the pack.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Qualifier: cycle racing
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
Synonym of platoon (“a small group of soldiers”) or section (cognate with the former; not invariably synonymous with it, depending on century of use).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: historical
Topics: government, military, politics, war
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: platoon
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
Borrowed from French peloton (“small ball (of thread, etc.), pellet; (cycling) group of riders formed during a cycling road race; (military) small group of soldiers, platoon”), from pelote (“small ball (of thread, etc.)”) (ultimately from Latin pila (“ball; ball game; globe, sphere”) (probably referring to a ball of hair), from pilus (“strand of hair”), of uncertain origin) + -on (augmentative suffix). Doublet of platoon.
Across languages
Translations
27 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Basque:
pelotoi
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Basque:
tropel
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Catalan:
escamot
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Chinese Mandarin:
大部隊 /大部队
(dàbùduì)
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Czech:
peloton
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Dutch:
peloton
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Finnish:
pääjoukko
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Finnish:
peloton
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
French:
peloton
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
German:
Peloton
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
German:
Hauptfeld
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
German:
Pulk
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Hebrew:
דבוקה
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Hungarian:
boly
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Ido:
pelotono
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Italian:
plotone
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Italian:
gruppo
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Korean:
펠러톤
(pelleoton)
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Lithuanian:
pelotons
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Polish:
peleton
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Portuguese:
pelotão
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Romanian:
pluton
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Russian:
пелото́н
(pelotón)
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Spanish:
pelotón
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Swedish:
klunga
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Swedish:
tätklunga
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
Ukrainian:
пелото́н
(pelotón)
— group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders
