soldier

play

noun sol·dier \ˈsōl-jər\

Definition of soldier

1a : one engaged in military service and especially in the armyb : an enlisted man or womanc : a skilled warrior
2 : a militant leader, follower, or worker
3a : one of a caste of wingless sterile termites usually differing from workers in larger size and head and long jawsb : one of a type of worker ants distinguished by exceptionally large head and jaws
4\ˈsō-jər, ˈsōl-\ : one who shirks work

soldierly

play \ˈsōl-jər-lē\ adjective or adverb

soldiership

play \ˈsōl-jər-ˌship\ noun

See soldier defined for English-language learners

See soldier defined for kids

Examples of soldier in a Sentence

Many soldiers were wounded in combat.
one of the goals of war is to keep as many soldiers as possible from being killed

Recent Examples of soldier from the Web

William H. Pate drew a short straw in life — born in Mississippi in 1845, dead at 16 during the harsh winter of 1861-62 with hundreds of other Confederate soldiers stationed at a Rebel camp in Hopkinsville, Kentucky.

— james bruggers, The Courier-Journal, "Scientist asks Gov. Bevin for help to exhume Confederate soldier in Hopkinsville casket", 6 July 2017
Kirkpatrick’s death is the fourth combat fatality this year of a conventional U.S. soldier in an operation outside a base.

— dan lamothe, Washington Post, "Death of U.S. soldier in Afghanistan highlights the evolving role of conventional combat troops there", 5 July 2017
This man is played, with a deeply furrowed brow, by the American tenor Michael Fabiano, making a formidable debut as Don José, the soldier who falls for the headstrong Gypsy Carmen and, when spurned, kills her.

— micaela baranello, New York Times, "Review: ‘Carmen,’ Boldly Rewritten as Therapy for a Modern Man", 5 July 2017
Conservative party Parliament member Tony Clement urged Khadr to give any settlement money to the widow and children of the American soldier he was accused of killing in Afghanistan.

— Bloomberg.com, "Widow Goes After Money Canada Will Give Ex-Gitmo Prisoner", 4 July 2017
When the gunfire finally ended, five of Miller's fellow soldiers had been injured, but his entire team survived.

— stacy st. clair, chicagotribune.com, "College of DuPage names homeland security building after Medal of Honor winner", 4 July 2017
The widow of Speer and another American soldier blinded by the grenade in Afghanistan filed a wrongful death and injury lawsuit against Khadr in 2014 fearing Khadr might get his hands on money from his $20 million wrongful imprisonment lawsuit.

— rob gillies, miamiherald, "Canada to apologize, pay former Guantánamo prisoner Omar Khadr", 4 July 2017
Gen. William King and a color guard of active soldiers from APG.

— erika butler, The Aegis, "Bel Air all set for day full of activities July 4", 30 June 2017
Large areas of land in Kentucky were granted to surveyors and soldiers from the Revolutionary War, many whom were of English descent and who were slaveholders.

— nancy stearns theiss, The Courier-Journal, "Recounting the first murder trial in Oldham County", 23 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'soldier'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of soldier

Middle English soudeour, from Anglo-French soudeer, soudeour mercenary, from soudee shilling's worth, wage, from sou, soud shilling, from Late Latin solidus solidus

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First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

Other Military Terms

bivouac, logistics, petard, salient, sally, supernumerary, tactical

soldier

verb sol·dier

Definition of soldier

soldiered

;

soldiering

play \ˈsōl-jə-riŋ, ˈsōlj-riŋ\

intransitive verb
1a : to serve as a soldierb : to behave in a soldierly mannerc : to push doggedly forward —usually used with on soldiered on to the end
2 : to make a pretense of working while really loafing