soldier

American  

[sohl-jer] / ˈsoʊl dʒər /

noun

1. a person who serves in an army; a person engaged in military service.

2. an enlisted person, as distinguished from a commissioned officer.

   the soldiers' mess and the officers' mess.

3. a person of military skill or experience.

   George Washington was a great soldier.

4. a person who contends or serves in any cause.

   a soldier of the Lord.

5. Also called button man.  Slang.  a low-ranking member of a crime organization or syndicate.

6. Entomology.

   1. a member of a caste of sexually underdeveloped female ants or termites specialized, as with powerful jaws, to defend the colony from invaders.

   2. a similar member of a caste of worker bees, specialized to protect the hive.

7. a brick laid vertically with the narrower long face out.

8. Informal.  a person who avoids work or pretends to work; loafer; malingerer.

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verb (used without object)

1. to act or serve as a soldier.

2. Informal.  to loaf while pretending to work; malinger.

   He was soldiering on the job.

verb phrase

1. soldier on  to persist steadfastly in one's work; persevere.

   to soldier on until the work is done.

soldier British  

/ ˈsəʊldʒə /

noun

1. 1. a person who serves or has served in an army

   2. Also called: common soldier.  a noncommissioned member of an army as opposed to a commissioned officer

2. a person who works diligently for a cause

3. a low-ranking member of the Mafia or other organized crime ring

4. zoology

   1. an individual in a colony of social insects, esp ants, that has powerful jaws adapted for defending the colony, crushing large food particles, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      soldier ant

5. informal  a strip of bread or toast that is dipped into a soft-boiled egg

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verb

1. to serve as a soldier

2. obsolete  to malinger or shirk

Other Word Forms

• nonsoldier noun
• soldiership noun

Etymology

Origin of soldier

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English souldiour, from Old French soudier, so(i)dier, equivalent to soulde “pay” (from Latin solidus; sol ² ) + -ier -ier ²

Example Sentences

“We would like to be civil servants, soldiers, prosecutors…just like we were in Ottoman times.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Mr Mohamed told the BBC that RSF foot soldiers were more brutal when their officers were not present, while Mr Adam dismissed what he described as attempts by the paramilitary group to improve its image.

From BBC

Large-scale maneuvering remains nearly impossible on a battlefield where masses of cheap drones can see and target movement by soldiers or vehicles.

From The Wall Street Journal

Below the domes and spires of a colonial metropolis, a discernible transfer of power is evident, as khadi-clad Congress volunteers outnumber pith-helmeted policemen and army soldiers.

From BBC

“Ukrainians have fought heroically for their independence,” said Witkoff, who has tried to inspire Ukrainian officials with the idea of soldiers disarming to earn Silicon Valley-scale salaries operating American built AI data centers.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• commando
• fighter
• guard
• guerrilla
• marine
• mercenary
• officer
• paratrooper
• pilot
• trooper
• veteran
• volunteer