Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Infantry |
InfantryNoun1. An army unit consisting of soldiers who fight on foot; "there came ten thousand horsemen and as many fully-armed foot". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "infantry" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1321. (references) |
Etymology: Infantry \In"fan*try\, noun. [French expression infanterie, Italian infanteria, from infante infant, child, boy servant, foot soldier, from the Latin expression infans, -antis, child; foot soldiers being formerly the servants and followers of knights. See Infant.]. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
19th Century Satire | A defender of the peace. Source: Foolish Dictionary, 1904. |
Literature | Infantry Foot soldiers. Said to be first applied to a body of men collected by the Infante or heir-apparent of Spain for the purpose of rescuing his father from the Moors. The success of the attempt rendered the corps popular. (Spanish, infanteria; Italian, fanteria; fante means a servant.). Source: Brewer's Dictionary. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
The British Army Infantry Corps comprises 55 battalions of Infantry, from 32 Regiments. It forms a flexible organisation, taking on a variety of roles including armoured, mechanised, jungle, desert and mountain fighting.
External link
- http://www.army.mod.uk/infantry/organisation/index.html
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "British Army Infantry."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Infantry (Infantrymen) are soldiers who fight primarily on foot, using personal weapons. They may arrive on scene in various ways, and are deployed either in formations or as skirmishers and guerillas. In the modern period, the term infantrymen is reserved for the most basic of infantry troops, the rifleman.
Infantry have been the core of most armies throughout history. In ancient times the most prominent formations were the phalanx and later the more sophisticated legion, which could reach several thousand men in size. After the Roman Empire collapsed cavalry dominated the west for almost a thousand years; particularly later in the Middle Ages when the armoured knight was invincible. The dominance of cavalry was not threatened until the Hundred Years War, where the development of the longbow saw French knights heavily defeated by well-disciplined infantry, archers, and dismounted cavalry at the battles of Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt. From this time on, cavalry became lighter and more mobile, and infantry became, in general, the most important arm.
Although the longbow would remain significantly more powerful than the newly invented musket for some hundreds of years - longbows had greater range, accuracy, penetrating power and rate of fire than early firearms - it required great skill to use effectively. It took a lifetime of training to become an effective archer, where to raise an army of musketeers simply needed ample numbers of men who could be trained in weeks or months, enough money, and access to manufacturing facilities for guns and powder. From the late Middle Ages on, industrialisation saw rural aristocracies weaken, cities became richer, and large, easily raised forces of relatively untrained infantry ruled the battlefield. With cavalry now lighter and unarmoured, the pike became an important close-range defence for bodies of well-drilled infantry.
Before the development of railroads in the 19th century, infantry armies got to the battlefield by walking, or sometimes by ship. In the 1890s and later, some countries used bicycle infantry, but the real revolution in mobility started in the 1920s with the use of motor vehicles, resulting in motorised infantry. Action in World War II demonstrated the importance of protecting the soldiers while they are moving around, resulting in the development of mechanized infantry that uses armoured vehicles for transport.
Modern-day infantry is supported by armoured fighting vehicles, artillery, and aircraft, but are still the only kind of military force that can take and hold ground, and thus remain essential to fighting wars.
Quotations
See also: army, marine, military history, military science, Zouave
- "I love the infantry because they are the underdogs. They are the mud-rain-frost-and-wind boys. They have no comforts, and they even learn to live without the necessities. And in the end they are the guys that wars can't be won without." Ernie Pyle
- "I'm convinced that the infantry is the group in the army which gives more and gets less than anybody else." Bill Mauldin, Up Front (1945)
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Infantry."
Synonym: InfantrySynonym: foot (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Combatant | Infantry, infantryman, private, private soldier, foot soldier; Tommy Atkins, rank and file, peon, trooper, sepoy, legionnaire, legionary, cannon fodder, food for powder; officer; (commander); subaltern, ensign, standard bearer; spearman, pikeman; spear bearer; halberdier, lancer; musketeer, carabineer, rifleman, jager, sharpshooter, yager, skirmisher; grenadier, fusileer; archer, bowman. |
Gunner, cannoneer, bombardier, artilleryman, matross; sapper, sapper and miner; engineer; light infantry, rifles,chasseur, zouave; military train, coolie. | |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Infantry |
| English words defined with "infantry": Chasseur ♦ dismounted, division ♦ Eniwetok ♦ Flank company, Foot company, Foot Guards ♦ Galloper gun, General guides, Guidon ♦ Half-pike, Hoplite ♦ Janizary ♦ Light infantry ♦ paratroops ♦ Scutum, Spontoon ♦ troop ♦ Voltigeur ♦ Yager. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "infantry": ANTITANK ASSAULT GUNNER, ARTILLERY OR NAVAL GUNFIRE OBSERVER, Assaye Regiment ♦ Bayonets, Brickdusts, Buckmaster's Light Infantry ♦ Cameron Highlanders, Caponière, COMBAT RIFLE CREWMEMBER ♦ Fusiliers ♦ Helmets ♦ INFANTRY UNIT LEADER, INFANTRY WEAPONS CREWMEMBER ♦ Koli ♦ Lacedaemonians, LIGHT BOB ♦ MARTINET ♦ Notarica ♦ Piou-piou ♦ Raymond, Red Feathers. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | You ever served in an infantry unit son (A Few Good Men; writing credit: Aaron Sorkin. Based on the play by Aaron Sorkin.) Join the Mobile Infantry and save the Galaxy (Starship Troopers; writing credit: Edward Neumeier. Based on the novel by Robert A. Heinlein.) I dropped out of college, told 'em I wanted the infantry, combat, Vietnam (Platoon; writing credit: Oliver Stone) It was the insignia of the First Infantry Division (The Big Red One; writing credit: Samuel Fuller) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Infantry Fire Power (1961) The Infantry Blues (1943) Japanese Infantry on the March (1901) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
Books | |
Theater & Movies | |
Music |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | C-130 Hercules and 1st Battalion, 508th Infantry. |  | A Company, 3rd Infantry, and "The Old Guard,". |
 | U.S. American National Red Cross Hospital No. 9, Paris, France. : The 469th Infantry Band, which played jazz music, entertaining the patients. Credit: National Library of Medicine. |  | [View across Parade Ground from Infantry Barracks at Mayaguez, Puerto Rico]. Credit: National Library of Medicine. |
 | Senior U.S. commanders assembled for the formal ceremonies in which General of the Army Douglas MacArthur returned the Capital city to the Republic of Korea Government, 29 September 1950. Those present are (from left to right, facing camera): Major General Oliver P. Smith, USMC, Commanding General, First Marine Division; Major General David G. Barr, U.S. Army, Commanding General, Seventh Infantry Division; Brigadier General Thomas J. Cushman, USMC, commanding forward echelon, First Marine Air Wing, and Vice Admiral C. Turner Joy, USN, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces, Far East. Photographed by Sgt. Ed Barnum, USMC. Credit: NAVY. |  | Pre-invasion bombardment of Guam, seen from USS New Mexico (BB-40), 14 July 1944. An amphibious force flagship (AGC), probably Task Force 53 flagship USS Appalachian (AGC-1), is at left. Other ships present include a DD-348 class destroyer (right center), an old fast transport (APD) and two landing craft, infantry (LCI). Photographed by S.C. Rotman. Credit: NAVY. |
 | 6th infantry going into action under heavy firing from the Spanish forces. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Ready! Members of the 132nd Infantry, 33rd Division in front line trench expecting an attack any minute. From the trench can be seen the Valley of the Meuse, where it is estimated 70,000 men are buried, France. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | The 22nd U.S. Infantry at Camp Wallace, Philippine Islands. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Beaufort, S.C. 50th Pennsylvania Infantry in parade formation. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Author | Date | Quotation |
Treaty of Versailles | 1919 | The following units may each have their own depot: An Infantry regiment; A Cavalry regiment; A regiment of Field Artillery; A battalion of Pioneers. (reference) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Title | Author | Quote |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | This raw infantry showed enthusiasm |
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man | Joyce, James | A quartet of them, soldiers of the ninetyseventh infantry regiment, sat at the foot of the cross and tossed up dice for the overcoat of the crucified |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Business | U.S.-manufactured defense electronics equipment imported into Thailand include field radios (such as the PRC-77 Manpack from ITT Sincgars, which has been the primary means of communication for Thai infantry units for more than a decade), radar systems in both mobile and fixed-site installations, navigation aids, and electronic control equipment in the cockpit. (references) | |
Children | Iraq | In contrast mortality rates for children under 5 years old in the Kurdish-controlled north dropped in the period between 1994 and 1999. The Special Rapporteur criticized the Government for "letting innocent people suffer while [it] maneuvered to get sanctions lifted." Had the Government not waited 5 years to adopt the oil-for-food program in 1996, he stated in October 1999, "millions of innocent people would have avoided serious and prolonged suffering." For the 8th, the Government held 3-week training courses in weapons use, hand-to-hand fighting, rappelling from helicopters, and infantry tactics for children between 10 and 15 years of age. (references) |
Civil Liberties | Russia | The six defendants include former intelligence chief of the airborne infantry Colonel Pavel Popovskikh, three other officers, and two civilians. (references) |
Burma | For example, in July 2000, army troops from the 246th Infantry Division reportedly forced 54 men to dismantle several temples and monasteries in the forced relocation areas of Kun-Hing township; on August 10, 2000, the same troops again conscripted 87 workers from the same town and forced them to build a shelter for the lumber and tin sheets taken from the dismantled monasteries. (references) | |
Economic History | Seychelles | The Army has one infantry battalion and two artillery elements. (references) |
Brunei Darussalam | All infantry, navy, and air combat units are made up of volunteers. (references) | |
Cote d'Ivoire | The Second Military Region is located in Daloa and is assigned one infantry battalion. (references) | |
Human Rights | Ghana | Members of the 64th Infantry Regiment were dispatched to control the situation. (references) |
Sri Lanka | The killings widely were believed to have been carried out by naval infantry personnel. (references) | |
Ghana | There were no developments in the August 2000 alleged detention and beating of a businessman by members of the elite 64th Infantry Regiment. (references) | |
Political Economy | Saint Kitts and Nevis | The security forces consist of a small police force, which includes a 50-person Special Services Unit that receives some light infantry training; a coast guard; and a small defense force. (references) |
Ghana | Although members of the security forces often are not punished for abuses, the commanding officer and other members of the 64th Infantry Unit, which is believed to commit many abuses, was transferred during the year. (references) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
Thomas Jefferson | 1801-1809 | The nature of that country requires indispensably that an unusual proportion of the force employed there should be cavalry or mounted infantry. |
Andrew Jackson | 1829-1837 | I would also recommend that the Marine Corps be merged in the artillery or infantry, as the best mode of curing the many defects in its organization. |
Bill Clinton | 1993-2001 | Last year, he led an infantry unit that stopped mob of extremists from taking over a radio station that is a voice of democracy and tolerance in Bosnia. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Infantry" is generally used as a noun (common) -- approximately 99.83% of the time. "Infantry" is used about 605 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (common) | 99.83% | 604 | 10,619 |
| Noun (proper) | 0.17% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Total | 100.00% | 605 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "infantry": armored infantry ♦ armoured infantry ♦ infantry battalion ♦ infantry brigade ♦ infantry division ♦ infantry entrenchment ♦ infantry fighting vehicle ♦ infantry laser weapon ♦ infantry man ♦ infantry regiment ♦ infantry rifleman ♦ infantry squad ♦ infantry unit ♦ Light infantry ♦ mechanized infantry ♦ motorized infantry ♦ motorized infantry brigade ♦ mounted infantry ♦ naval infantry. Additional references. | |
| Hypenated Usage | |
Ending with "infantry": non-infantry. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "infantry"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | i këmbësorit, këmbësori (foot). (various references) | |
Arabic | جند المشاة. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | пехотен (unmounted), пехота (foot). (various references) | |
Chinese | 步兵 (foot, foot soldier, infantryman). (various references) | |
Czech | pìchota. (various references) | |
Danish | infanteri. (various references) | |
Dutch | voetvolk, infanterie. (various references) | |
Esperanto | infanterio. (various references) | |
Farsi | پیاده نظام(نظ.), سربازپیاده . (various references) | |
Finnish | jalkaväki. (various references) | |
French | infanterie. (various references) | |
Frisian | ynfantery. (various references) | |
German | Infanterie (foot), Fußvolk. (various references) | |
Greek | πεζικό. (various references) | |
Hebrew | חיל "ר'לים. (various references) | |
Hungarian | gyalogság (feet, foot), gyalogosok, gyalogos (afoot, fantassin, foot passenger, foot soldier, footsoldier, ground trooper, infantryman, pedestrian, wayfaring, wobbler). (various references) | |
Italian | fanteria (foot). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 普通科 , 歩兵 (foot soldier, infantryman), 歩兵 (foot soldier, infantryman, pawn). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | ふつうか, ほへい (foot soldier, infantryman). (various references) | |
Korean | 보병 (Feet, FOOT, FT). (various references) | |
Manx | sleih coshey, sidooryn coshey. (various references) | |
Norwegian | infanteri. (various references) | |
Pig Latin | infantryay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | infantaria (infantrymen). (various references) | |
Romanian | infanterie (foot). (various references) | |
Russian | пехотный, пехота. (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | infanterijski, infanterija, pešadijski, pešadija. (various references) | |
Spanish | infantería. (various references) | |
Swedish | infanteri (foot), fotfolk. (various references) | |
Thai | ทหารราบ (infantryman). (various references) | |
Turkish | piyade (foot, infantryman, peon). (various references) | |
Ukrainian | піхота (foot). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | exercitibus, exercitu, exercitui, exercitum, exercitus, exercituum, pedes, pedites, peditibus, peditum. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "infantry": infantryman, infantrymen. (additional references) | |
| |
"Infantry" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Incantrix, Infanterie, infantery, infanty, infinty, infrantry. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "infantry" (pronounced i"nfuntrē) |
| 5 | -u n t r ē | carpentry, gallantry, pageantry, peasantry, pedantry, pleasantry. |
| 4 | -n t r ē | complementary, country, elementary, entry, gantry, gentry, pantry, reentry, sentry, wintry. |
| 3 | -t r ē | ancestry, artistry, asymmetry, banditry, baptistery, basketry, bigotry, biochemistry, cabinetry, chemistry, circuitry, dentistry, dissymmetry, forestry, gadgetry, geochemistry, geometry, helotry, idolatry, industry, Maestri, ministry, mitre, optometry, palmistry, paltry, pastry, poetry, poultry, psychiatry, punditry, puppetry, registry, rocketry, spectrometry, sultry, summitry, symmetry, tapestry, telemetry, toiletry, zealotry. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-f-i-n-n-r-t-y" | |
-2 letters: infant, ratify. | |
-3 letters: afrit, faint, fairy, fanny, finny, infra, nifty, rainy, riant, tinny, train. | |
-4 letters: airn, airt, airy, anti, arty, ayin, fain, fair, fiar, fiat, firn, frat, fray, frit, naif, nary, raft, rain, rani, rant, rift, tain, tarn, tiny, tray, tyin, yarn. | |
-5 letters: aft, ain, air, ait, ani, ant, any, arf, art, fan, far. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-f-i-n-n-r-t-y" | |
+3 letters: functionary, infantryman, infantrymen. | |
+4 letters: inflationary. | |
+5 letters: confectionary, confraternity, inferentially, infuriatingly, unfalteringly. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Quotations: Historic | 9. Quotations: Fiction 10. Quotations: Non-fiction 11. Quotations: Speeches 12. Usage Frequency | 13. Expressions 14. Expressions: Internet 15. Translations: Modern 16. Translations: Ancient | 17. Derivations 18. Rhymes 19. Anagrams 20. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
