A **pennant** is a long, narrow, tapering flag, usually triangular or with a swallow-tailed fly. Pennants are used at sea as signals, as commissioning pennants on warships, and ashore for decoration and identification. The commissioning pennant of a navy ship, flown continuously throughout its commission, is one of the most enduring uses of the form.
**Example**: A long, narrow commissioning pennant flies day and night from the masthead of a warship in commission and is hauled down only when she is paid off.
**See also**: [pennon](/glossary/pennon/), [burgee](/glossary/burgee/), [signal-flag](/glossary/signal-flag/), [swallow-tail](/glossary/swallow-tail/)