I. ˈfen(t)səbəl adjective
Etymology: Middle English fensable, fensible, short for defensable, defensible — more at defensible
1. chiefly Scotland , of a man
a. : capable of defending or bearing arms for his country
b. : eligible for military service
2. archaic : capable of being defended
this old tower … is fencible — Sir Walter Scott
3. : being of the corps of fencibles
fencible and militia regiments
II. noun
( -s )
: a soldier in a corps enlisted only for home service and for the duration of a war especially in Britain and the United States during the second half of the 18th and first half of the 19th centuries