army

noun

ar·​my ˈär-mē 

plural armies

1

a

: a large organized body of armed personnel trained for war especially on land

b

: a unit capable of independent action and consisting usually of a headquarters, two or more corps, and auxiliary troops

c

often capitalized : the complete military organization of a nation for land warfare

2

: a great multitude

an army of birds

3

: a body of persons organized to advance a cause

Synonyms

• array
• battalion
• host
• legion

Example Sentences

the armies of Alexander the Great

He left home and joined the army after he graduated from high school.

The company employs an army of lawyers to handle its legal affairs.

They sent in a whole army of trained technicians.

The organization was founded by a dedicated army of volunteers.

Recent Examples on the Web

That morphed into the final story of a fictional cartoon series, Foo Fighters Saturday Morning Action Time!, in which the Foos fight aliens and go on a quest to save rock ‘n’ roll from from a mysterious alien overlord and his robot army. —Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 22 Mar. 2023

Costa Rica has long been a model of progressive democracy in Latin America, a nation that abolished its army in 1948 and set aside a quarter of its territory for conservation. —Mary Beth Sheridan, Washington Post, 22 Mar. 2023

Ravka: This country in the Grishaverse has a lot of parallels to Czarist Russia: it's ruled by a monarchy and the king resides in his Grand Palace, conscripting citizens into his army. —Aimée Lutkin, ELLE, 16 Mar. 2023

Thanks to the notorious ‘Alix Earle effect,’ her army of followers (and even some fellow It-Girls) are copying the technique, which is so budget-friendly. —Sarah Maberry, Seventeen, 15 Mar. 2023

So will the army of henchmen who are inevitably there to confront Wick, and who will be mowed down like Grand Theft Auto fodder. —Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 13 Mar. 2023

As one of the first Black officers to lead a special forces team, then-Captain Davis and his team in June 1965 engaged in a nearly 19-hour battle in a North Vietnamese army camp in the village of Bong Son, the Army said. —Nakylah Carter, ABC News, 3 Mar. 2023

Davis, then a captain and commander with the 5th Special Forces Group, engaged in nearly continuous combat during a pre-dawn raid on a North Vietnamese army camp in the village of Bong Son in Binh Dinh province. —Darlene Superville, ajc, 3 Mar. 2023

Israel’s army, border police and domestic security agency on Wednesday arrested three Palestinian terrorism suspects involved in the murder of Ganeles, who was visiting the country to attend a wedding. —Benjamin Weinthal, Fox News, 1 Mar. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Middle English armee, armye "host of armed men, naval fleet, military expedition," borrowed from Anglo-French armé, armee, from armer "to arm entry 2" + -ee, suffix of action or result (going back to Vulgar Latin *-āta, noun derivative from feminine of Latin -ātus, past participle ending of Latin first-conjugation verbs)

Note: Compare Spanish armada "military force, fleet of warships"—see armada.

First Known Use

circa 1522, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing army

• army ant
• general of the army
• sergeant major of the army
• standing army

• army ant
• general of the army
• sergeant major of the army
• standing army

Kids Definition

army

noun

ar·​my ˈär-mē 

plural armies

1

a

: a large body of men and women organized for land warfare

b

often capitalized : the complete military organization of a nation for land warfare

2

: a great number of persons or things

3

: a body of persons organized to promote an idea

Etymology

Middle English armee "army," from early French armee (same meaning), derived from Latin arma "weapons"