I. ˈtrüp noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle French troupe, from troupeau herd, crowd, from Old French, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English throp, thorp group, village — more at thorp
1.
a. : a group of soldiers : a body of armed men
the small troop … that guarded the settlement was drawn up on parade — Leslie Thomas
b.
(1) : a cavalry unit corresponding to an infantry company
(2) : a company of horse artillery
c. : armed forces : soldiers — usually used in plural
victorious troops
2.
a. : a collection of people or things : company
a mobile and dynamic troop whose major aims are the improvement of the mind — E.O.Hauser
b. : a considerable number : a large quantity
she had … troops of friends — Havelock Ellis
troops of servants and endless leisure — Letitia Fairfield
3. : a flock of animals or birds
suddenly started a troop of tall giraffes — H.R.Haggard
troops of finches and linnets up here — Richard Jefferies
4.
a. : a unit of at least five boy scouts of the Boy Scouts of America under the leadership of a scoutmaster
b. : a unit of the Girl Scouts comprising a group of usually 8 to 32 girls and 1 or 2 adult leaders who meet regularly to carry on Girl Scout activities
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
intransitive verb
1. : to gather in crowds : come together : assemble
armies at the call of trumpet … troop to the standard — John Milton
2. : to go one's way : walk
trooped off to market — Bessie Hackett
trooped away to the ball game
3. : to consort in company : associate — usually used with with
a snowy dove trooping with crows — Shakespeare
4. : to move in an orderly manner : march in or as if in file
the fourth grade trooped in — Frances G. Patton
pushed back their chairs and trooped into the kitchen — Kenneth Roberts
5. : to move in large numbers : go as a big group : throng
the miners troop home … trailing slowly in gangs across the white field — D.H.Lawrence
hordes of hysterical revelers trooping through their rooms — Green Peyton
transitive verb
obsolete : to unite with or form into a troop
•
- troop the colors