guerrilla English · revision 2442

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ɡəˈɹɪlə/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|es|guerrilla|t=skirmishing warfare, literally little war]],^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) a diminutive of [[es|guerra|t=war]],^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995) which is of Germanic origin,^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate) related to Old High German ''werra'' “strife” and to English [[war]].^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A fighter in an irregular, independent force (1809).^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ English acquired the word in the Peninsular War (1808–1814), when bands of Spanish peasants harassed the occupying French.^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) In Spanish it named the warfare itself, and the OED records this sense in English in 1819, but the personal sense, which properly belonged to ''guerrillero'', became the usual one.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) The adjective dates from 1811, and figurative use from 1861.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1809 – a fighter in irregular warfare.^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1811 – adjective, as in ''guerrilla war''.^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1819 – irregular warfare by small independent bands.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1861 – figurative use.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A member of a small, irregular armed band that harasses an enemy with surprise raids and sabotage.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Relating to such fighters or their methods.^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Unconventional or subversive in method, as in ''guerrilla marketing''.^(MW Collegiate)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[guerrillaism]]

+ * [[guerrilla warfare]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[war]]

+ * [[guerrillero]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ The variant spelling ''guerilla'' is also used.^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}