4-4-2

English

The 4-4-2 formation.

A 4-4-2 locomotive.

Noun

4-4-2 (plural 4-4-2s)

1. (soccer) A popular football formation with 4 defenders, 4 midfielders and 2 strikers.
   • 2012 May 26, Phil McNulty, “Norway 0-1 England”, in BBC Sport‎^[1]:

     England's formation was a rigid 4-4-2 against a Norway side of surprisingly limited ambition and on one of the rare occasions James Milner got in the action he forced a save from Jarstein.

2. Under the Whyte notation system, a steam locomotive that has a two-axle leading truck, two powered driving axles and a one-axle trailing truck.
   • 1965, Philip Shuster, Eugene L. Huddleston, Alvin F. Staufer, C & O power: steam and diesel locomotives of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, 1900-1965, page 16:

     This group of 30 0-8-0’s came from Baldwin between July and October 1948 and were given road numbers 255 to 284 (C/N 74024 to 74053) pushing aside several 4-4-2’s in the 275-284 bracket in the process.

Usage notes

• This locomotive wheel arrangement is commonly called an "Atlantic" type.

Further reading

• Formation (football): 4-4-2 on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• 4-4-2 (locomotive) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• 2-4-4, 4-2-4