troop

1 of 2

noun

1
a
: a group of soldiers
b
: a cavalry unit corresponding to an infantry company
c
troops plural : armed forces, soldiers
2
: a collection of people or things : crew sense 2
3
: a flock of mammals or birds
4
: the basic organizational unit of Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts under an adult leader

troop

2 of 2

verb

trooped; trooping; troops

intransitive verb

1
: to move or gather in crowds
2
: to go one's way : walk
3
: to spend time together : associate
4
: to move in large numbers

Examples of troop in a Sentence

Noun Where is his troop heading? a plan to withdraw troops a troop of enthusiastic children Verb We all trooped back inside. The kids trooped off to school.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
North Korea has also supplied over 12,000 ground troops for the war, according to U.S. estimates. Kevin Shalvey, ABC News, 24 Apr. 2025 In January, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said over 200,000 troops would be required. Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Apr. 2025
Verb
Celebrities and academics would troop down to Havana to sit at Castro’s feet, cooing over him. Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 5 Mar. 2025 At the Dior men’s wear show on Friday afternoon, models trooped down a celestial flight of stairs, trotted around the perimeter and then descended another flight of stairs, disappearing out of view. Jacob Gallagher, New York Times, 25 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for troop

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French trope, troupe company, herd, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English thorp, throp village — more at thorp

First Known Use

Noun

1545, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1565, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of troop was in 1545

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Troop.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/troop. Accessed 29 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

troop

1 of 2 noun
1
a
: a group of soldiers
b
2
: a collection of people or things : company
3
: a flock of mammals or birds
4
: a unit of Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts under an adult leader

troop

2 of 2 verb
: to move or gather in crowds

More from Merriam-Webster on troop

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!