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Glite Dictionary
trainbandsman

trainbandsman

9.9
A man in a local militia in England long ago
  • noun
  • Archaic
: miliciano
  • The diary mentions a trainbandsman drilling with his fellows in the village square.

Examples

  • Many a trainbandsman was called upon to defend the town during the uprising.

  • He dressed in the uniform of a proud trainbandsman for the parade.

  • The trainbandsman stood proudly in his uniform.

  • Many trainbandsmen were called to defend their towns.

  • He dressed in the uniform of a proud trainbandsman for the parade.

  • Many a trainbandsman was called upon to defend the town during the uprising.

  • The diary mentions a trainbandsman drilling with his fellows in the village square.

Surface Forms

trainbandsman singular
trainbandsmen plural

Morphology

trainbandsman = trainband (semi-transparent) = train + band + man

The final formation is a straightforward agentive/member formation from 'trainband' + 'man' (member of a trainband).

Etymology

The word trainbandsman breaks into train ('to prepare'), band ('group'), and man ('person'), so it originally meant a person in a prepared local group of fighters. It was used in England for a town militia member in the 1500s to 1700s.