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Synonyms

infantry

American  
[in-fuhn-tree] / ˈɪn fən tri /

noun

plural

infantries

  1. soldiers or military units that fight on foot, in modern times typically with rifles, machine guns, grenades, mortars, etc., as weapons.

  2. a branch of an army composed of such soldiers.

infantry British  
/ ˈɪnfəntrɪ /

noun

  1. Abbreviation: Inf.   inf. 

    1. soldiers or units of soldiers who fight on foot with small arms

    2. ( as modifier )

      an infantry unit
"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

Other Word Forms

  • noninfantry noun

Etymology

Origin of infantry

1570–80; < Italian infanteria, equivalent to infante boy, foot-soldier ( infant ) + -ria -ry

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Minneapolis-born, Princeton and Harvard graduate served as an infantry platoon leader in Guantanamo Bay and Iraq, where he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal.

From BBC • Mar. 11, 2026

The former Fox News personality, who served as an Army National Guard infantry officer in Iraq and Afghanistan, disdains rules of engagement and other guardrails as constraining to the “warrior ethos.”

From Salon • Mar. 11, 2026

A decorated infantry officer who spent more than 18 years in the National Guard and served in combat, deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan, Hegseth has nonetheless been been plagued by scandals.

From Barron's • Mar. 5, 2026

But I did four tours in the infantry in Iraq and Afghanistan.

From Slate • Mar. 4, 2026

His infantry lie on their bellies and peer across at Confederate cavalry.

From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.