Mān'-of-war', n.

n. A government vessel employed for the purposes of war; a ship of war; a war vessel.

Man-of-war bird (Ornith.), a large, black, tropical sea-fowl, belonging to the pelican family; the frigate-bird. — Portuguese man-of-war (Zool.), a marine animal belonging to the class of Acalephs, and of the genus Physalia (P. Atlantica). It consists of an irregular vesicle filled with air, from which depend numerous long tentacles, and the upper surface of which is in the form of an elevated crest, acting to a certain extent as a sail. Baird.