infantry

noun

in·​fan·​try ˈin-fən-trē 

plural infantries

1

a

: soldiers trained, armed, and equipped to fight on foot

b

: a branch of an army composed of these soldiers

2

: an infantry regiment or division

Did you know?

The Italian word fante (from Latin infans, “infant, child”) originally meant “child,” later “youth, boy,” and then “servant.” In the 14th century, fante also took on the sense “foot soldier.” In Renaissance times, the fanteria, foot soldiers collectively, became a significant branch of arms, and the Italian word infanteria, was borrowed into English in the 1500s.

Examples of infantry in a Sentence

He joined the infantry after leaving school.

Recent Examples on the Web

The removal of the provision to cap service at three years could provoke anger in the ranks, particularly among infantry soldiers who have been engaged in brutal combat on the front lines for more than two years with little respite. —Marc Santora, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024

Field commanders have reported troop shortages along the front line, especially infantry who deploy at the forwardmost positions. —Isabelle Khurshudyan, Washington Post, 6 Apr. 2024

Conscription has been a sensitive matter amid Ukraine's growing shortages of infantry and ammunition, which have helped give Russia the battlefield initiative. —Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 4 Apr. 2024

When artillery cannot cover infantry, the troops must wait for a window of opportunity to evacuate casualties. —Ivana Kottasova, CNN, 24 Feb. 2024

Its garrison survived and had to be cleared out by infantry. —Shashank Joshi, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024

Ukrainian infantry take up Zero positions on January 27, 2024 in Kupiansk Frontline, Ukraine. —TIME, 2 Feb. 2024

In late 2020, analysts with the California think-tank RAND gamed out a clash between U.S. Army and Russian army mechanized infantry companies in some near-future setting after the U.S. Army has integrated armed ground robots into its force structure. —David Axe, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024

Jon Retzer, who served in the infantry with the Army and then the Army National Guard in the 1990s, said exposure logs should be kept for service members in any role, even when they’re not deployed or engaged in combat. —Melissa Chan, NBC News, 17 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle French & Old Italian; Middle French infanterie, from Old Italian infanteria, from infante boy, foot soldier, from Latin infant-, infans

First Known Use

1579, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

infantry

noun

in·​fan·​try ˈin-fən-trē 

plural infantries

: a branch of an army made up of soldiers trained, armed, and equipped to fight on foot

Etymology

from early French infanterie and early Italian infanteria, both meaning "infantry," from early Italian infante "infant, boy, foot soldier," from Latin infans "infant"

Word Origin

In the Middle Ages in France, a young soldier from a good family who was not yet a knight was called enfant, which means "child." Likewise, in Italy a soldier moving on foot behind a knight riding a horse was an infante. Later, Italian foot soldiers as a group became known as infanteria, which was borrowed into French as infanterie and into English as infantry.