maquis

or Ma·quis

[ mah-kee, ma-; French ma-kee ]

/ mɑˈki, mæ-; French maˈki /

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noun, plural ma·quis

[mah-keez, ma-; French ma-kee]. /mɑˈkiz, mæ-; French maˈki/.

the French underground movement, or Resistance, that combatted the Nazis in World War II.

Also called maquisard. a member of this movement.

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Origin of maquis

1940–45; <French, special use of maquis, makis wild, bushy land <Italian (Corsican dial.) macchie (with French -is for -ie), plural of macchia a thicket <Latin macula spot

Words nearby maquis

Maputo, maquette, maqui, maquiladora, maquillage, maquis, maquisard, mar, Māra, marabi, marabou

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use maquis in a sentence

Your fine cloth frock-coat would be in tatters in two days, if you wore it in the maquis.
Columba|Prosper Merimee
We shall meet again in the maquis, some day, perhaps, and then we'll continue our study of Virgil.
Columba|Prosper Merimee
Startled by the firing, a horse which had been wandering through the maquis, was really coming close up to them.
Columba|Prosper Merimee
I had a guide with me, for fear I should lose my way in the maquis.
The Corsican Brothers|Alexandre Dumas

Rand leaned over and spat into the brass cuspidor, a gesture of braggadocio he had picked up among the French maquis.
Murder in the Gunroom|Henry Beam Piper

British Dictionary definitions for maquis

maquis

/ (mɑːˈkiː) /

noun plural -quis (-ˈkiː)

shrubby mostly evergreen vegetation found in coastal regions of the Mediterranean: includes myrtles, heaths, arbutus, cork oak, and ilex

(often capital)

the French underground movement that fought against the German occupying forces in World War II
a member of this movement

Word Origin for maquis

C20: from French, from Italian macchia thicket, from Latin macula spot

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