troop

American  

[troop] / trup /

noun

1. an assemblage of persons or things; company; band.

   Synonyms:

   crowd , group , body

2. a great number or multitude.

   A whole troop of children swarmed through the museum.

   Synonyms:

   throng , swarm , flock , herd , crowd

3. Military.  an armored cavalry or cavalry unit consisting of two or more platoons and a headquarters group.

4. troops, a body of soldiers, police, etc..

   Mounted troops quelled the riot.

5. a single soldier, police officer, etc..

   Three troops were killed today by a roadside bomb.

6. a unit of Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts usually having a maximum of 32 members under the guidance of an adult leader.

7. a herd, flock, or swarm.

8. Archaic.  a band or troupe of actors.

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verb (used without object)

1. to gather in a company; flock together.

   Synonyms:

   collect

2. to come, go, or pass in great numbers; throng.

   Synonyms:

   swarm

3. to walk, as if in a march; go.

   to troop down to breakfast.

4. to walk, march, or pass in rank or order.

   The students trooped into the auditorium.

5. to associate or consort (usually followed bywith ).

verb (used with object)

1. British Military.  to carry (the flag or colors) in a ceremonial way before troops.

2. Obsolete.  to assemble or form into a troop or troops.

troop British  

/ truːp /

noun

1. a large group or assembly; flock

   a troop of children

2. a subdivision of a cavalry squadron or artillery battery of about platoon size

3. (plural) armed forces; soldiers

4. a large group of Scouts comprising several patrols

5. an archaic spelling of troupe

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verb

1. (intr) to gather, move, or march in or as if in a crowd

2. (tr) military to parade (the colour or flag) ceremonially

   trooping the colour

3. slang  (tr) military (formerly) to report (a serviceman) for a breach of discipline

4. (intr) an archaic word for consort

Related Words

See company. Troop, troupe both mean a band, company, or group. Troop has various meanings as indicated in the definitions above. With the spelling troupe the word has the specialized meaning of a company of actors, singers, acrobats, or other performers.

Other Word Forms

• intertroop adjective

Etymology

Origin of troop

First recorded in 1535–45; from French troupe, Old French trope, probably back formation from tropel “herd, flock” ( French troupeau ), equivalent to trop- (from Germanic; thorp ) + -el, ultimately from Latin -ellus diminutive suffix

Example Sentences

Like the British troops who readily acknowledged the “pluck” of the Dervishes, Mr. Hart is impressed by their willingness to face the massed firepower of rifles, machine guns and artillery.

From The Wall Street Journal

The U.S. also stations commandos and other forces in Somalia itself, where they help elite local troops fighting al-Shabaab—an Islamist insurgent group affiliated with al Qaeda—and the Somali branch of Islamic State.

From The Wall Street Journal

Thousands of troops and state personnel will take part in a military parade Tuesday to mark the anniversary, in keeping with other key dates in September in ideologically-aligned neighbours China and Vietnam.

From Barron's

The market has seen some turbulence lately, but overall stock prices have been on a tear since April, boosting troop net worths.

From The Wall Street Journal

He’ll need it—for on the current trajectory, Russian troops will continue to proceed at a glacial place.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• armed forces
• army
• contingent
• forces
• military
• soldiers