Armored cruiser \Ar"mored cruis"er\ (Nav.)
A man-of-war carrying a large coal supply, and more or less
protected from the enemy's shot by iron or steel armor. There
is no distinct and accepted classification distinguishing
armored and protected cruisers from each other, except that
the first have more or heavier armor than the second.
[Archaic]
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]