infantry
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Pronunciation
- IPA: /ˈɪnfəntɹi/, /ˈɪnfənt͡ʃɹi/[1]
Etymology
It is borrowed from Middle French infanterie,[2][3][4][5] from Italian infanteria (“foot soldiers”),[2][3][4][5][6] a collective from infante “youth; foot soldier”,[2][3][4][5][6] from Latin infans (“infant”).[2][3][4][5] It is related to infant.[2][3][1]
Earliest recorded meaning
The body of foot soldiers; the part of an army that fights on foot (1579).[7][3][5]
Semantic evolution
Etymonline explains the Italian word as a force made up of those too inexperienced or low in rank to serve in the cavalry.[4] The word also meant, humorously, “infants collectively” (1613–16).[7][4] It has otherwise kept its military sense,[7] applied to soldiers who fight on foot and to the branch of an army they make up.[2][5][6]
Timeline
Modern meaning
Noun
- Soldiers trained, armed and equipped to fight on foot.
- The branch of an army made up of such soldiers.
- An infantry regiment or division.
Word family
- infantryman
- light infantry
Related words
- infant
- infante
- cavalry
References
- ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
- ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
- ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ a b c Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
- ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press