trooper

English

Etymology

From troop +‎ -er, from French troupe. The sense of “one who endures adversity” comes from trouper (“member of an acting troupe”) but through assimilation with the sense of “soldier” has come to be usually spelled “trooper”.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɹuːpə(ɹ)/

• Audio (AU):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uːpə(ɹ)

Noun

trooper (plural troopers)

1. (military) A soldier of private rank in cavalry or armour. [from 1640]

   Synonyms: cavalryman, horse soldier, crewman, armored soldier, (Canadian military slang) zipperhead, (abbreviation) Tpr

2. A cavalry horse; charger.
3. A soldier.
4. (British) A troopship.
5. (US) A state trooper. [from 1911]
6. (Australia) A mounted policeman. [from 1858]
7. (figurative, colloquial) One who endures adversity or hardship with an attitude of stoicism and persistence. [from 1959]

   Synonyms: survivor, tough cookie

   He was a real trooper about taking care of the kids for the weekend.

Derived terms

• swear like a trooper

Related terms

• trouper

Coordinate terms

• cavalryman
• cuirassier
• dragoon
• hussar
• lancer
• uhlan
• yeoman

Translations

a soldier

• Esperanto: rajdistarano
• Finnish: panssarimies (fi)
• French: troupier (fr) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: soldato (it) m
• Maori: hōia

Verb

trooper (third-person singular simple present troopers, present participle troopering, simple past and past participle troopered)

1. To work as a trooper.
   • 2009, Dana Stabenow, Whisper to the Blood, →ISBN, page 153:

     Maybe I should quit troopering and hire on with Global Harvest.

2. To work steadily at an unpleasant job without complaint.
   • 2011, G. Robert Jones, Discard, →ISBN, page 111:

     Carrie handed out tools, helped hold a measuring tape, and troopered on where she could,

   • 2013, C.A. McJack, Fate's Twisted Circle - Volume 2, →ISBN, page 120:

     But she troopered on, plastering a smile on her face and giving her a warm greeting and inwardly reminded herself that Ms. Madeleine was of no threat to her, as if she had a fear of Jack-in-the-boxes.

References

• “trooper” in the Canadian Oxford Dictionary, Second Edition, Oxford University Press, 2004.
• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “troop”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “troupe”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Anagrams

• potrero, protero-