MILITANT

Militant

The English word militant is both an adjective and a noun, and is usually used to mean vigorously active, combative and aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in 'militant reformers'. It comes from the 15th century Latin "militare" meaning "to serve as a soldier". The related modern concept of the militia as a defensive organization against invaders grew out of the Anglo-Saxon fyrd. In times of crisis, the militiaman left his civilian duties and became a soldier until the emergency was over, when he returned to his civilian occupation and life.

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militant

Noun

  1. An aggressive or fighting person.
  2. One who serves as a soldier.
  3. One who supports a Trotskyite political view or engages in aggressive left-wing politics.

Adjective

  1. Aggressive or combative.
  2. Fighting or warlike; belligerent.
  3. Active in an aggressive way in support of a political or social cause (often associated with extreme left-wing politics).


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: militant
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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