Etymology Inherited from Middle English soudeour, from Old French soudier or soudeour (“mercenary”), from Medieval Latin soldarius (“soldier (one having pay)”), from Late Latin solidus, a type of coin. Displaced Old English cempa (whence obsolete kemp). (red herring): An allusion to soldiers' red uniforms; red herring is, reciprocally, a slang term for "soldier".
Government, Military, Politics, War A member of a ground-based army, of any rank, but especially an enlisted member.
My friends and I saw a soldier questioning a man holding a bag with a gun in his pocket.
The Citizens in their rage, imagining that euery poſt in the Churche had bin one of yᵉ Souldyers, ſhot habbe or nabbe at randon uppe to the Roode lofte, and to the Chancell, leauing ſome of theyr arrowes ſticking in the Images.1577, Raphaell Holinshed; Richarde Stanyhurst [i.e., Richard Stanihurst], “[The Historie of Irelande […].] The Thirde Booke of the Historie of Ireland, Comprising the Raigne of Henry the Eyght: ….”, in The Firste Volume of the Chronicles of England, Scotlande, and Irelande […], volume I, London: […] [Henry Bynneman] for Iohn Hunne, →OCLC, pages 77–78, column 2:
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I am a soldier and unapt to weep.1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene iii]:
Captain Edward Carlisle, soldier as he was, martinet as he was, felt a curious sensation of helplessness seize upon him as he met her steady gaze, her alluring smile ; he could not tell what this prisoner might do.1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
Stanning, who was commissioned from Sandhurst in 2008 and has served in Afghanistan, is not the first soldier to bail out the organisers at these Games but will be among the most celebrated.2012 August 1, Owen Gibson, London 2012: rowers Glover and Stanning win Team GB's first gold medal, Guardian Unlimited:
She saw a soldier while collecting her baggage at the airport.
It were meet that any one, before he came to be a captain, should have been a soldier.1596 (date written; published 1633), Edmund Spenser, A Vewe of the Present State of Irelande […], Dublin: […] Societie of Stationers, […], →OCLC; republished as A View of the State of Ireland […] (Ancient Irish Histories), Dublin: […] Society of Stationers, […] Hibernia Press, […] [b]y John Morrison, 1809, →OCLC:
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A guardsman.
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A member of the Salvation Army.
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A low-ranking gangster or member of a gang, especially the mafia, who engages in physical conflict.
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Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, UK A piece of buttered bread (or toast), cut into a long thin strip for dipping into a soft-boiled egg.
Beside his egg was a plate of buttered toast, already cut up into soldiers.2008, Nicholas Drayson, A Guide to the Birds of East Africa, page 180:
[L]et 'em know how important it is to have Runyon Avenue soldiers up in our corners; their loyalty to us is worth more than any award is.2004, “Like Toy Soldiers”, in Encore, performed by Eminem, Shady Records:
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A red or cuckoo gurnard (Chelidonichthys cuculus).
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One of the asexual polymorphic forms of termites, in which the head and jaws are very large and strong. The soldiers serve to defend the nest.
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Dated, Slang A red herring (cured kipper with flesh turned red).
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Board games, Games, Xiangqi A xiangqi piece that moves and captures by advancing one point. Once it has crossed the river, it may also move and capture one point horizontally.
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A brick, for example in a course of brickwork, that is laid vertically on its shortest end (smallest face), so that its tallest and slimmest face faces the outside of the wall.
Etymology Inherited from Middle English soudeour, from Old French soudier or soudeour (“mercenary”), from Medieval Latin soldarius (“soldier (one having pay)”), from Late Latin solidus, a type of coin. Displaced Old English cempa (whence obsolete kemp). (red herring): An allusion to soldiers' red uniforms; red herring is, reciprocally, a slang term for "soldier".
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To continue steadfast; to keep striving.
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To serve as a soldier.
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To intentionally restrict labor productivity; to work at the slowest rate that goes unpunished.
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Slang To take a ride on (another person's horse) without permission.
It was the first time I had ever “soldiered” a horse. Soldiering means using a horse without the owner's leave or knowledge. Two of our lost horses we never found. Probably some one was soldiering them!1917, Cuthbert Fetherstonhaugh, After many days: being the reminiscences of Cuthbert Fetherstonhaugh: