infantry
Americannoun
plural
infantries-
soldiers or military units that fight on foot, in modern times typically with rifles, machine guns, grenades, mortars, etc., as weapons.
-
a branch of an army composed of such soldiers.
noun
Other Word Forms
- noninfantry noun
Etymology
Origin of infantry
1570–80; < Italian infanteria, equivalent to infante boy, foot-soldier ( see infant) + -ria -ry
Explanation
Armies usually contain different divisions for different purposes. For example, soldiers on horseback belong to the Cavalry, those who work in communications are in the Signal Corps, and soldiers specially trained to fight on foot are members of the Infantry. It seems somewhat strange to have the word "infant" in a word that refers to a fighting military unit, but the word infantry once referred to the foot soldiers who were too young or too inexperienced to qualify for the cavalry. The word was taken from the Latin word for a youth, infantem, and so evolved into infantry after working its way through the Spanish, Italian, and French, appearing in English in the late 16th Century.
Vocabulary lists containing infantry
The Things They Carried
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The American Civil War
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Ancient Rome - Introductory
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The automaker is expected to be a leading contender to build a larger infantry squad vehicle for the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026
George served as an infantry officer in the first Gulf War and in recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026
Matt served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan as an infantry squad leader and gunnery sergeant in the Marine Corps.
From Slate • Apr. 1, 2026
The former Fox News personality, who served as an Army National Guard infantry officer in Iraq and Afghanistan, disdains rules of engagement and other guardrails as constraining to the “warrior ethos.”
From Salon • Mar. 11, 2026
But, stunningly, after the cavalry charges, Washburn’s infantry does not move.
From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
