serjeant

[sahr-juh nt]

noun Chiefly British.

sergeant.

sergeant

[sahr-juh nt]

noun

a noncommissioned army officer of a rank above that of corporal.
U.S. Air Force. any noncommissioned officer above the rank of airman first class.
a police officer ranking immediately below a captain or a lieutenant in the U.S. and immediately below an inspector in Britain.
a title of a particular office or function at the court of a monarch (often used in combination): sergeant of the larder; sergeant-caterer.
sergeant at arms.
Also called sergeant at law. British. (formerly) a member of a superior order of barristers.
sergeantfish.
(initial capital letter) a surface-to-surface, single-stage, U.S. ballistic missile.
a tenant by military service, below the rank of knight.

Also especially British, ser·jeant (for defs 1–7, 9).

Origin of sergeant

1150–1200; Middle English sergant, serjant, serjaunt < Old French sergent < Latin servient- (stem of serviēns), present participle of servīre. See serve, -ent

Related formsser·gean·cy

[sahr-juh n-see] /ˈsɑr dʒən si/, ser·geant·ship, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for serjeant

Historical Examples of serjeant

I didn't know you was so tender-hearted,' said the serjeant.
Barnaby Rudge
Charles Dickens
Serjeant Fitzgerald is not in the House, and a great loss he is.
Charles Lever, His Life in His Letters, Vol. II (of II)
Edmund Downey
Serjeant Whitaker, one of the most eminent lawyers of his day, was an eccentric.
The Jest Book
Mark Lemon
"Every man can talk well about something," the Serjeant says.
The Christmas Books
William Makepeace Thackeray
Serjeant Philips—You presented your friend with it when he was discontented.
State Trials, Political and Social
Various

British Dictionary definitions for serjeant

serjeant

noun

a variant spelling of sergeant

sergeant

noun

a noncommissioned officer in certain armed forces, usually ranking above a corporal
1. (in Britain) a police officer ranking between constable and inspector
2. (in the US) a police officer ranking below a captain
See sergeant at arms
a court or municipal officer who has ceremonial duties
(formerly) a tenant by military service, not of knightly rank
See serjeant at law

Also: serjeant

Derived Formssergeancy (ˈsɑːdʒənsɪ) or sergeantship, noun

Word Origin for sergeant

C12: from Old French sergent, from Latin serviēns, literally: serving, from servīre to serve

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 serjeant

sergeant

c.1200, "servant," from Old French sergent, serjant "(domestic) servant, valet; court official; soldier," from Medieval Latin servientum (nominative serviens) "servant, vassal, soldier" (in Late Latin "public official"), from Latin servientem "serving," present participle of servire "to serve" (see serve (v.)); cognate with Spanish sirviente, Italian servente; a twin of servant, and 16c. writers sometimes use the two words interchangeably.

Specific sense of "military servant" is attested from late 13c.; that of "officer whose duty is to enforce judgments of a tribunal or legislative body" is from c.1300 (sergeant at arms is attested from late 14c.). Meaning "non-commissioned military officer" first recorded 1540s. Originally a much more important rank than presently. As a police rank, in Great Britain from 1839.

Middle English alternative spelling serjeant (from Old French) was retained in Britain in special use as title of a superior order of barristers (c.1300, from legal Latin serviens ad legem, "one who serves (the king) in matters of law"), from which Common Law judges were chosen; also used of certain other officers of the royal household. sergeant-major is from 1570s. The sergeant-fish (1871) so-called for lateral markings resembling a sergeant's stripes. Related: Sergeancy.