Word of the Day

: June 2, 2008

hors de combat

adjective or adverb or-duh-kohng-BAH (the "ng" is not pronounced, but the preceding

What It Means

: out of combat : disabled

hors de combat in Context

With their best pitcher hors de combat with a shoulder injury, the team faced a bleak season.

Did You Know?

We picked up "hors de combat" directly from French back in the mid-18th century. Benjamin Franklin put the term to use in a 1776 letter, observing that an "arrow sticking in any part of a man puts him hors du [sic] combat till it is extracted." But you don't have to use the word as literally as Franklin did. "Combat" can refer to any fight or contest, not just fighting in a war. A politician who's out of the running in a political race could be declared "hors de combat," for example. But the adjective (or adverb) need not refer only to humans or animals: if you own a car, chances are your vehicle has been hors de combat at least once.