Light cruiser

From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference.

In starship classification, a light cruiser is a small- to medium-sized multi-purpose starship.

The 24th century starship USS Drake was designated a light cruiser. (TNG: "The Arsenal of Freedom")

[edit] Background

According to the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Technical Manual, the Saber-class was also classified as a light cruiser, as was the Intrepid-class. During the Dominion War a variant type of light cruiser was built from an Intrepid-class primary hull. Another type of light cruiser used in the Dominion War was a variant of the Constitution-class of starship, a saucer with two warp nacelles.

While the Technical Manual itself is not canon, it is a Memory Alpha permitted resource.