I. ˈfāˌlaŋks, ˈfaˌ-, -aiŋks noun
( plural phalanx·es -ksə̇z ; or pha·lan·ges fəˈlanˌjēz, fāˈ- ; see numbered senses )
Etymology: Latin phalang-, phalanx line of battle, from Greek, log, line of battle, bone of the finger or toe — more at balk
1.
a. : a body of heavily armed infantry in ancient Greece formed in close deep ranks and files with joined shields and long lances
the Macedonian phalanx , formed by Philip, was first 8 ranks, later from 12 to 16 ranks, deep
b. : any of various compact orders of battle like the Greek phalanx (as the parallelogrammatic one of the ancient Gauls and Germans) ; broadly : a body of troops in close array
2. plural phalanges
[New Latin, from Greek]
: one of the digital bones of the hand or foot beyond the metacarpus or metatarsus of a vertebrate that in man are three to each finger and toe with the exception of the thumb and great toe which have but two each, in many other vertebrates vary slightly in numbers, and are greatly increased in some aquatic forms with paddle-shaped limbs
3. plural usually phalanxes
a. : a group or body in close formation : a massed arrangement of persons, animals, or things
a phalanx of umbrellas — Betty W. Powers
b. : an organized or closely united body of persons (as for aggressive or defensive action)
police locked and barred all but one door, and formed a solid phalanx in front of it — Green Peyton
a solid phalanx of orthodoxy against which the revolutionaries shatter themselves — Sheldon Cheney
4. : chess pawns of one player placed side by side
5. : a rarely used taxonomic category to which various ranks have been assigned
6.
[translation of French phalange ]
: a Fourierist community : phalanstery
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
: to form into a phalanx
back of him the graduating class was phalanxed — J.T.Farrell
whose homes are in the phalanxed apartment buildings and hotels nearby — American Guide Series: New York City