janissary
(often initial capital letter) a member of an elite military unit of the Turkish army organized in the 14th century and abolished in 1826 after it revolted against the Sultan.
(often initial capital letter) any soldier in the Turkish army.
a member of any group of loyal guards, soldiers, or supporters.
Origin of janissary
1- Also jan·i·zar·y [jan-uh-zer-ee]. /ˈdʒæn əˌzɛr i/.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use janissary in a sentence
From these hardy orphans the ranks of the Janissaries were recruited.
Mahmoud in destroying the Janissaries took for his model Peter the Great.
Otherwise it is but half-admirable: Turk-Janissaries have it otherwise; and it comes to comparatively little.
History of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Vol. XVIII. (of XXI.) | Thomas CarlyleLike janissaries, they derive a kind of freedom from the very condition of their servitude.
Meanwhile the disordered ranks of the Akindgi and Janissaries left behind, reformed and attacked the French in their rear.
The Walls of Constantinople | Bernard Granville Baker
British Dictionary definitions for janissary
janizary (ˈdʒænɪzərɪ)
/ (ˈdʒænɪsərɪ) /
an infantryman in the Turkish army, originally a member of the sovereign's personal guard, from the 14th to the early 19th century
Origin of janissary
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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