troop
Word family
- troopernounC1
- troopsplural nounB1
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
'Troops' refers to soldiers as a collective body, often emphasizing numbers and organized deployment. 'Soldiers' is the everyday term for individual members of an army — anyone wearing a military uniform. 'Forces' is broader: it includes all branches of the armed forces (army, navy, air force, marines), and can also refer to police or peacekeeping units. 'Military' is the most abstract — it describes the institution or system of armed defense rather than the people themselves. 'Army' is narrower than 'forces' and usually means the land-based branch. For example, 'The government sent troops to the border' (soldiers on the ground), versus 'The government sent military advisors' (experts, not necessarily combat soldiers). When discussing numbers, 'troops' is preferred: 'ten thousand troops' sounds natural, while 'ten thousand soldiers' feels slightly more individual-focused.
Common collocations
Nouns
- troop movement
- troop deployment
- troop reduction
- troop withdrawal
- troop transport
- troop morale
- troop strength
Phrases
- a troop of
- troops of
Prepositions
- troop into
- troop out of
- troop through
- troop to
- troop down
- troop along
Etymology
The word 'troop' entered English in the 16th century from French 'troupe', meaning a company or band of people. French inherited it from an earlier Latin or Germanic root meaning a herd or flock. The military sense — a group of soldiers — became dominant by the 1600s. The Scout-organisation meaning appeared in the early 20th century, borrowing the idea of an organized unit. The verb sense followed naturally from the noun, describing how a 'troop' moves together.