phalanx

American  

[fey-langks, fal-angks] / ˈfeɪ læŋks, ˈfæl æŋks /

noun

plural

phalanxes, phalanges

1. (in ancient Greece) a group of heavily armed infantry formed in ranks and files close and deep, with shields joined and long spears overlapping.

2. any body of troops in close array.

3. a number of individuals, especially persons united for a common purpose.

4. a compact or closely massed body of persons, animals, or things.

5. Military. Phalanx, a radar-controlled U.S. Navy 20 mm Gatling-type gun deployed on ships as a last line of defense against antiship cruise missiles.

6. (in Fourierism) a group of about 1800 persons, living together and holding their property in common.

7. Anatomy, Zoology. any of the bones of the fingers or toes.

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verb (used without object)

1. Printing. to arrange the distribution of work in a shop as evenly as possible.

phalanx British  

/ ˈfælæŋks /

noun

1. an ancient Greek and Macedonian battle formation of hoplites presenting long spears from behind a wall of overlapping shields

2. any closely ranked unit or mass of people

   the police formed a phalanx to protect the embassy

3. a number of people united for a common purpose

4. (in Fourierism) a group of approximately 1800 persons forming a commune in which all property is collectively owned

5. anatomy any of the bones of the fingers or toes

6. botany

   1. a bundle of stamens, joined together by their stalks (filaments)

   2. a form of vegetative spread in which the advance is on a broad front, as in the common reed Compare guerrilla

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phalanx Scientific  

/ fā′lăngks′ /

plural

phalanges

1. Any of the small bones of the fingers or toes in humans or the digits of many other vertebrates.

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Etymology

Origin of phalanx

First recorded in 1545–55; from Latin, from Greek phálanx “military formation, bone of finger or toe, wooden roller”

Example Sentences

A phalanx of lobbyists hired by the Blazers, meanwhile, were telling state lawmakers they’d need a total of $600 million, starting this year.

From Salon • Mar. 30, 2026

The son of a Nasa Indigenous guerrilla and an Afro‑Colombian police officer, his protection is a phalanx of some 30 Indigenous Guards, some barely out of their teens and armed with little more than batons.

From Barron's • Feb. 19, 2026

But he was well supported by a phalanx of twirlers - offies from Will Jacks and Root, leggies from Ahmed plus Jacob Bethell's left-arm orthodox.

From BBC • Jan. 24, 2026

Their militant duet, “Suoni la tromba,” was a musical high point, only slightly marred by some “Braveheart”-style red and white body-painting for them and a phalanx of extra men.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026

Then, after retrieving him from the water, they formed a phalanx, forced their way into the building, and slid the doors closed behind themselves, letting in only a few Seattle pressmen.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Related Words

• army
• flock
• horde
• multitude
• throng