Gurkha

[ gur-kuh, goor- ]

noun,plural Gur·khas, (especially collectively) Gur·kha.
  1. a member of a Rajput people, Hindu in religion, who achieved dominion over Nepal in the 18th century.

  2. a Nepalese soldier in the British or Indian army.

Origin of Gurkha

1
First recorded in 1805–15

Words Nearby Gurkha

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Gurkha in a sentence

  • Not even a Gurkha or a Hindu can now travel in Tibet without especial permission.

  • Its duty was to go forward and make connection with the Scotch and Gurkha troops with which it was brigaded.

    Soldier Stories | Rudyard Kipling
  • The Gurkha rear-companies tripped and blundered over loose stones.

    Soldier Stories | Rudyard Kipling
  • There were a thousand dusky natives hemming in but fifty Gurkha soldiers and one British officer.

    The Great Airship. | F. S. Brereton
  • "A force of Gurkha soldiers held up in the hills, sir," he told Joe.

    The Great Airship. | F. S. Brereton

British Dictionary definitions for Gurkha

Gurkha

/ (ˈɡʊəkɑː, ˈɡɜːkə) /


nounplural -khas or -kha
  1. a member of a Hindu people, descended from Brahmins and Rajputs, living chiefly in Nepal, where they achieved dominance after being driven from India by the Muslims

  2. a member of this people serving as a soldier in the Indian or British army

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012