Emily Dickinson Lexicon

FRIG'ATE, n. [Fr. fregate; It. fregata; Sp. and Port. fragata; Turkish, forgota; perhaps Gr. αφρακτος, L. aphractum, an open ship or vessel, for in Portuguese it signifies a boat as well as a frigate. The Greek word αφρακτος signifies not fortified; a and φρασσω. It was originally a vessel without decks used by the Rhodians. The frigate was originally a kind of vessel used in the Mediterranean, and propelled both by sails and by oars. Lunier.]

1. A ship of war, of a size larger than a sloop or brig, and less than a ship of the line; usually having two decks and carrying from thirty to forty four guns. But ships mounting a less number than thirty guns are sometimes called frigates; as are ships carrying a larger number.
2. Any small vessel on the water. [Not used.] Spenser.