corps

American  

[kawr] / kɔr /

noun

plural

corps

1. Military.

   1. a military organization consisting of officers and enlisted personnel or of officers alone: corps of cadets.

      the U.S. Marine Corps;

      corps of cadets.

   2. Also called army corps.  a military unit of ground combat forces consisting of two or more divisions and other troops.

2. a group of persons associated or acting together.

   the diplomatic corps;

   the press corps.

   Synonyms:

   band, crew, force, team

3. Printing. a Continental designation that, preceded by a number, indicates size of type in Didot points of 0.0148 inch (3.8 millimeters).

   14 corps.

4. Obsolete. corpse.

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corps British  

/ kɔː /

noun

1. a military formation that comprises two or more divisions and additional support arms

2. a military body with a specific function

   intelligence corps

   medical corps

3. a body of people associated together

   the diplomatic corps

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Etymology

Origin of corps

First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English corps, cors, from Middle French, from Latin corpus “body”; corpse

Explanation

A corps is an army unit consisting of at least two divisions. This word can also refer to other groups of people, like a press corps, which is a gang of journalists trying to get the scoop. Although the word corps comes from the Latin corpus, for “body,” don’t pronounce the p or you’re talking about the kind of body that goes in a coffin. The main meaning of a corps (which is singular despite the s) is a unit of the army. The word applies to other groups, too. A law firm has a corps of lawyers, a doctor has a corps of nurses, and a tiny car could have a corps of clowns.

Example Sentences

All members of Nasa's astronaut corps, including the four on Artemis II, are eligible.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

The 92-year-old paved the way for diversifying the astronaut corps more than half-a-century ago, and later served as a mentor to Glover.

From Barron's • Apr. 1, 2026

By 1908, Wilhelm’s attitude toward the U.S. was more benevolent, and he offered President Theodore Roosevelt an elite corps of Prussian soldiers to be posted in California, supposedly to fend off a Japanese invasion.

From Salon • Mar. 15, 2026

Linebacker Del’Shawn Phillips, another important part of the Chargers’ special teams corps, is returning on a two-year, $7.5-million deal, NFL Media reported.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

“The cavalry was Buford, sir. TWo brigades. They really fought. Then there was the First Corps, the black hats, John Reynolds’ old corps.

From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara

Related Words

• band
• body
• contingent
• crew
• detachment
• division
• squad
• squadron
• troop
• troupe
• unit