comrade

noun

com·​rade ˈkäm-ˌrad 

-rəd,

 especially British  -ˌrād

1

a

: an intimate friend or associate : companion

" … reflecting upon all my comrades that were drowned … "

—Daniel Defoe

b

: a fellow soldier

comrades in battle

2

[from its use as a form of address by communists] : communist

comradeliness

ˈkäm-ˌrad-lē-nəs 

noun

comradely adjective

comradeship

ˈkäm-ˌrad-ˌship 

noun

Did you know?

In Latin, camara or camera denoted a vaulted ceiling or roof. Later, the word simply mean “room, chamber” and was inherited by many European languages with that meaning. In the Spanish, the word became cámara, and a derivative of that was camarada “a group of soldiers quartered in a room” and hence “fellow soldier, companion.” That Spanish word was borrowed into French as camarade and then into Elizabethan English as both camerade and comerade.

Synonyms

• associate
• cohort
• companion
• compatriot
• compeer
• crony
• fellow
• hobnobber
• mate
• running mate

Examples of comrade in a Sentence

He enjoys spending time with his old army comrades.

the boy, and two others who are known to be his comrades, are wanted for questioning by the police

Recent Examples on the Web

When the Dharma Initiative’s Horace (Doug Hutchison) is drunk at the security perimeter, his comrades alert LaFleur: Sawyer, firmly established in the community and head of security to boot. —Proma Khosla, IndieWire, 5 July 2024

With a career spanning over three decades, Usher’s comrades’ electrifying performances, soulful voices, and undeniable stage presences ensured all eyes were glued to the screen. —Walaa Elsiddig, Billboard, 1 July 2024

Vernon Mitchell, 103, who survived the shelling that killed two of his comrades, and was later awarded with the Purple Heart, Bronze star and the French Legion of Honor. —Michael Collins, USA TODAY, 1 June 2024

After the war, his SAPD comrade Richard Rosendahl, who survived the camp, tracked down Helene and told her that Gottfried had been gassed after attempting to escape. —John Ganz, Harper's Magazine, 22 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle French camarade group sleeping in one room, roommate, companion, from Old Spanish camarada, from cámara room, from Late Latin camera, camara — more at chamber

First Known Use

1544, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing comrade

• brother/sister/comrade in arms
• comrade in arms

Kids Definition

comrade

noun

com·​rade ˈkäm-ˌrad 

-rəd

: a close friend or associate

comradely adjective

comradeship

-ˌship 

noun