Illustration of dragoon
- dragoon 1
1
: a member of a European military unit formerly composed of heavily armed mounted troops
2
dragooned; dragooning; dragoons
1
: to subjugate or persecute by harsh use of troops
2
: to force into submission or compliance especially by violent measures
Did you know?
A dragoon was a mounted European infantryman of the 17th and 18th centuries armed with a firearm called by the same name. We suspect no arm-twisting is necessary to convince you that the firearm's name, which came to English from French, comes from the fired weapon's resemblance to a fire-breathing dragon. History has recorded the dragonish nature of the dragoons who persecuted the French Protestants in the 17th century during the reign of Louis XIV. The persecution by means of dragoons eventually led to the use of the word dragoon as a verb.
Synonyms
Examples of dragoon in a Sentence
Verb
she was dragooned into agreeing to the fraudulent scheme
Recent Examples on the Web
Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 8 Apr. 2024
What happens with Hermann and the dragoon?
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2022
Chris Stokel-Walker, WIRED, 11 Jan. 2024
When pro landscapers dragoon your neighbor’s turf, mowing is just part of the plan.
—Sal Vaglica, WSJ, 22 Sep. 2023
See all Example Sentences for dragoon 
Noun
The family, Louisville residents, also enjoyed some pizza and crab dragoons from the food trucks.
—Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 8 Apr. 2024
What happens with Hermann and the dragoon?
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2022
Verb
Airlines that have pulled 737 Max 9s from service have canceled some flights, and dragooned over planes into service to replace the missing 737 Maxes.
—Chris Stokel-Walker, WIRED, 11 Jan. 2024
When pro landscapers dragoon your neighbor’s turf, mowing is just part of the plan.
—Sal Vaglica, WSJ, 22 Sep. 2023
See all Example Sentences for dragoon
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dragoon.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near dragoon
Cite this Entry
“Dragoon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dragoon. Accessed 26 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dragoon
1 of 2 noun
dra·goon
drə-ˈgün 
dra-
: a mounted infantry soldier
dragoon
2 of 2 verb
: to get (someone) to do something by force
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