sapper

[sap-er]

See more synonyms for sapper on Thesaurus.com

noun

a soldier employed in the construction of fortifications, trenches, or tunnels that approach or undermine enemy positions.

Origin of sapper

First recorded in 1620–30; sap² + -er¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for sapper

olive, blue-green, prospector, fir, sap, jade, sage, moss, pine, forest, sea, grass, peacock, apple, spinach, willow, verdigris, malachite, beryl, chartreuse

Examples from the Web for sapper

Historical Examples of sapper

"There was a sapper of that name whom we met at Simla once, my dear," replied the Colonel.
The Hero
William Somerset Maugham
Yes, every sin is a miner and sapper for a larger army in the rear.
My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year
John Henry Jowett
But the sapper was free; 'free' was my last conscious thought.
The Riddle of the Sands
Erskine Childers
Her heart had entered on a course of heavy thumping, like a sapper in the mine.
Beauchamp's Career, Complete
George Meredith
Nothing was sacred from that mimic any more than from a sapper.
Khartoum Campaign, 1898
Bennet Burleigh

British Dictionary definitions for sapper

sapper

noun

a soldier who digs trenches
(in the British Army) a private of the Royal Engineers

Sapper

noun

real name Herman Cyril McNeile . 1888–1937, British novelist, author of the popular thriller Bull-dog Drummond (1920) and its sequels

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

Word Origin and History for sapper

1620s, in a military context, "soldier employed in building fortifications," agent noun from sap (v.1).