Where does “battalion” come from?
Battalion comes from French bataillon, from Italian battaglione, ultimately deriving from a root meaning a body of soldiers or fighting group.
battalion (English): An army unit having two or more companies, etc....
Definitions
- An army unit having two or more companies, etc....
Ancestry of “battalion”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | bataillon | battalion |
| 2 | Italian | battaglione | battalion |
| 3 | Italian | battaglia | battle, fight; third-person singular present... |
| 4 | Late Latin | battualia | military exercises |
| 5 | Latin | battuo | I beat, hit, pound, beat up; I fight; I bang |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰew- | to grow, swell; to swell, wax, grow; to blow; to... |