soldier

[ sohl-jer ]

noun

1. a person who serves in an army; a person engaged in military service.
2. an enlisted person, as distinguished from a commissioned officer:

   the soldiers' mess and the officers' mess.

3. a person of military skill or experience:

   George Washington was a great soldier.

4. a person who contends or serves in any cause:

   a soldier of the Lord.

5. Also called button man. Slang. a low-ranking member of a crime organization or syndicate.
6. Entomology.
   1. a member of a caste of sexually underdeveloped female ants or termites specialized, as with powerful jaws, to defend the colony from invaders.
   2. a similar member of a caste of worker bees, specialized to protect the hive.
7. a brick laid vertically with the narrower long face out. Compare rowlock ( def 2 ).
8. Informal. a person who avoids work or pretends to work; loafer; malingerer.

verb (used without object)

1. to act or serve as a soldier.
2. Informal. to loaf while pretending to work; malinger:

   He was soldiering on the job.

verb phrase

1. to persist steadfastly in one's work; persevere:

   to soldier on until the work is done.

soldier

/ ˈsəʊldʒə /

noun

1. 1. a person who serves or has served in an army
   2. Also calledcommon soldier a noncommissioned member of an army as opposed to a commissioned officer
2. a person who works diligently for a cause
3. a low-ranking member of the Mafia or other organized crime ring
4. zoology
   1. an individual in a colony of social insects, esp ants, that has powerful jaws adapted for defending the colony, crushing large food particles, etc
   2. ( as modifier )

      soldier ant

5. informal.
   a strip of bread or toast that is dipped into a soft-boiled egg

verb

1. to serve as a soldier
2. obsolete.
   to malinger or shirk

Other Words From

• soldier·ship noun
• non·soldier noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of soldier¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English souldiour, from Old French soudier, so(i)dier, equivalent to soulde “pay” (from Latin solidus; sol ² ) + -ier -ier ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of soldier¹

C13: from Old French soudier, from soude (army) pay, from Late Latin solidus a gold coin, from Latin: firm

Example Sentences

Under its terms Israel and Hezbollah will pull out from the south, a traditional Hezbollah stronghold, and the Lebanese military will deploy an additional 5,000 soldiers to the area.

From BBC

Through the open gates of bases, soldiers were carrying out routine maintenance, stick figures on the lines of tanks, etched against the late afternoon sky.

From BBC

Disappointed with their reaction, Khalife carried on his life as a young soldier, but stayed in touch with his Iranian contacts.

From BBC

Former British army soldier Daniel Khalife has been found guilty of spying for Iran.

From BBC

Larraín makes a half-hearted attempt to recast Callas as a feminist martyr, alleging, as obliquely as possible, that she was once forced to trade her body to soldiers for cash and food.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• commando
• fighter
• guard
• guerrilla
• marine
• mercenary
• officer
• paratrooper
• pilot
• trooper
• veteran
• volunteer