infantry
/ˈɪnfəntɹi/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.96 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Soldiers who fight on foot (on land), as opposed to cavalry and other mounted units, regardless of external transport (e.g. airborne).
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The part of an army consisting of infantry soldiers, especially opposed to mounted and technical troops.
Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "The next summer there was a crop of blackberries in the woods. I took wife and babies, supplied with lunch and horse feed; […] Wife took command of the infantry and I of the transportation. We were both soon calling loudly for assistance."
Etymology
From Middle French infanterie, from older Italian, possibly from Spanish infantería (“foot soldiers, force composed of those too inexperienced or low in rank for cavalry”), from infante (“foot soldier”), originally "a youth", either way from Latin īnfāns (“child”); see there for more.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: infanterie, -, infantería, īnfāns
Usage
Subject
Wiktionary places this term in Military.