soldier
noun
sol·dier
| \ ËsÅl-jÉr
\
\
Definition of soldier
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a
: one engaged in military service and especially in the army
b
: an enlisted man or woman
c
: 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 jaws
b
: one of a type of worker ants distinguished by exceptionally large head and jaws
4
\ ËsÅ-jÉr
, ËsÅl- \
: one who shirks work
, ËsÅl- \
: one who shirks work
soldier
verb
soldiered;
soldiering\ ËsÅl-jÉ-riÅ
, ËsÅlj-riÅ \
, ËsÅlj-riÅ \
Definition of soldier (Entry 2 of 2)
1a
: to serve as a soldier
b
: to behave in a soldierly manner
c
: to push doggedly forward
—usually used with on soldiered on to the end
2
: to make a pretense of working while really loafing
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Other Words from soldier
Noun
soldierly
\ ËsÅl-jÉr-lÄ
\
adjective or adverb
\
adjective or adverb
soldiership
\ ËsÅl-jÉr-Ëship
\
noun
\
noun
Synonyms & Antonyms for soldier
Synonyms: Noun
dogface, fighter, legionary, legionnaire, man-at-arms, regular, serviceman, trooper, warrior
Antonyms: Noun
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Examples of soldier in a Sentence
Noun
Many soldiers were wounded in combat. one of the goals of war is to keep as many soldiers as possible from being killedRecent Examples on the Web: Noun
Americans would prefer, of course, that no U.S. soldiers be deployed to hostile, faraway places. — Kaj Larsen, National Review, "The U.S. Must Remain in Africaâs Fight against Boko Haram," 21 Aug. 2019 Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have long had ties to Sudan and have used child soldiers from the country to wage its war in Yemen. — Jen Kirby, Vox, "Sudan signs power-sharing deal as its former dictator goes to trial," 19 Aug. 2019 The distinction between the private individual, or civilian, and the soldier was erased. — Brenda Wineapple, The New Republic, "Who wrote women out of Civil War history?," 16 Aug. 2019 Verburg, who previously recorded Jurczyk talking about the war, said that because his unit was a target, the soldiers were pulled back from the lines to save them. — Karen Pilarski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "German solider captured after the Battle of the Bulge remembered for living the American dream," 15 Aug. 2019 After years of therapy for PTSD from his years as a child soldier, Luce has grown into an almost implausibly perfect student and school poster boy: debate team captain, football player, track star, soon-to-be valedictorian. — Nora Mcgreevy, BostonGlobe.com, "More than a matter of black and white," 8 Aug. 2019 The Afghan soldier who turned his gun on the Americans was wounded and is in custody, according to U.S. officials. — Rahim Faiez, chicagotribune.com, "Afghan forces and U.S. coalition allies have killed more civilians in 2019 than the Taliban, U.N. says," 2 Aug. 2019 On the Israeli side, 67 Israeli soldiers, five Israeli civilians and one Thai national were killed, while hundreds more were injured. — Marcy Oster, sun-sentinel.com, "Five years after last Gaza war, soldierâs parents still want a âdecent burialâ for him," 31 July 2019 Two other soldiers were also injured when the tree struck a parked Humvee near them. — Amy Huschka, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan soldier dies after tree falls on him during training exercise," 25 July 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Once Garoppolo yielded the nationally televised stage to backups C.J. Beathard and Nick Mullens, the 49ers soldiered on in more respectable fashion. — Cam Inman, The Mercury News, "49ers 24, Broncos 15: Top takeways amid Garoppoloâs clumsy debut," 19 Aug. 2019 Still, Zuckerberg soldiered on, making his point, which happens to be largely true. — Nicholas Thompson, WIRED, "Zuckerberg Defends Free Speech, Even When the Speech is False," 26 June 2019 Eflin and Arrieta could soldier on the rest of the year, and Drew Smyly could prove to be a solid free-agent addition. — Mitchell Gladstone, SI.com, "Five Under-the-Radar Deals for Contenders to Make Before the Trade Deadline," 29 July 2019 Even as the hip-hop era subsided, and the forces of financialization took over the city, the campaign to criminalize and stigmatize graffiti soldiered on. — Daisy Alioto, The New Republic, "How Graffiti Became Gentrified," 19 June 2019 But Uslan soldiered forward, teaming in 1979 with the esteemed former MGM exec Benjamin Melnicker to purchase and peddle the film and television rights. — Scott Huver, CNN, "'Batman' turns 30: How a superfan got Hollywood to redefine the Dark Knight," 23 June 2019 Opportunity has soldiered on for years since then, but was caught up in a global dust storm on Mars this summer. — John Wenz, Popular Mechanics, "Opportunity May Not Come Back Until January. NASA May Not Give It That Long.," 1 Sep. 2018 Sylvester Stallone will soldier on as Rambo once again, after already making a stellar return as Rocky. — Richard Newby, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Men in Black' and the Battle Between Nostalgia and Fatigue," 15 June 2019 My father, of prime age for soldiering in WWII, never wore a uniform. — Fred Niedner, Post-Tribune, "D-Day recollections remind us of horrors of war," 7 June 2019These 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.
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More Definitions for soldier
soldier
noun
English Language Learners Definition of soldier
: a person who is in the military : a member of an army
See the full definition for soldier in the English Language Learners Dictionary
soldier
noun
sol·dier
| \ ËsÅl-jÉr
\
\