troop

[troop]

noun

1. an assemblage of persons or things; company; band.

   Synonyms: crowd, group, body

2. a great number or multitude.

   A whole troop of children swarmed through the museum.

   Synonyms: throng, swarm, flock, herd, crowd

3. Military.,  an armored cavalry or cavalry unit consisting of two or more platoons and a headquarters group.

4. troops, a body of soldiers, police, etc..

   Mounted troops quelled the riot.

5. a single soldier, police officer, etc..

   Three troops were killed today by a roadside bomb.

6. a unit of Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts usually having a maximum of 32 members under the guidance of an adult leader.

7. a herd, flock, or swarm.

8. Archaic.,  a band or troupe of actors.

verb (used without object)

1. to gather in a company; flock together.

   Synonyms: collect

2. to come, go, or pass in great numbers; throng.

   Synonyms: swarm

3. to walk, as if in a march; go.

   to troop down to breakfast.

4. to walk, march, or pass in rank or order.

   The students trooped into the auditorium.

5. to associate or consort (usually followed bywith ).

verb (used with object)

1. British Military.,  to carry (the flag or colors) in a ceremonial way before troops.

2. Obsolete.,  to assemble or form into a troop or troops.

troop

/ truːp /

noun

1. a large group or assembly; flock

   a troop of children

2. a subdivision of a cavalry squadron or artillery battery of about platoon size

3. (plural) armed forces; soldiers

4. a large group of Scouts comprising several patrols

5. an archaic spelling of troupe

verb

1. (intr) to gather, move, or march in or as if in a crowd

2. (tr) military to parade (the colour or flag) ceremonially

   trooping the colour

3. slang,  (tr) military (formerly) to report (a serviceman) for a breach of discipline

4. (intr) an archaic word for consort

Other Word Forms

• intertroop adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of troop¹

First recorded in 1535–45; from French troupe, Old French trope, probably back formation from tropel “herd, flock” ( French troupeau ), equivalent to trop- (from Germanic; thorp ) + -el, ultimately from Latin -ellus diminutive suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of troop¹

C16: from French troupe , from troupeau flock, of Germanic origin

Synonym Study

See company. Troop, troupe both mean a band, company, or group. Troop has various meanings as indicated in the definitions above. With the spelling troupe the word has the specialized meaning of a company of actors, singers, acrobats, or other performers.

Example Sentences

His troop deployments are a false flag — meant to provoke a response in order to justify harsh crackdowns.

Read more on Salon

UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has said there are "no plans" to send British troops to be part of a multinational force that will monitor the Gaza ceasefire from Israel.

Read more on BBC

At least 12 Pakistani troops have been killed this week alone in the border regions.

Read more on Barron's

About 20 California National Guard troops were also pulled into political battle, deployed to provide “refresher training,” the North American Aerospace Defense Command said in a statement.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Up to 200 US troops already based in the Middle East will be moved to Israel to help monitor the ceasefire in Gaza, according to US officials.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• armed forces 
• army 
• contingent 
• forces 
• military 
• soldiers www.thesaurus.com