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combatant

UK/ˈkɒm.bə.tənt/US/kəmˈbæ.tənt/
nounC1Rare in speech; mostly a word you read · #12,817 of 15,258leans written

Other forms: combatants

A combatant is somebody taking part in a fight. Non-combatant, enemy combatants, the combatants withdrew.

In the law of war the distinction is fundamental: combatants may be attacked and non-combatants may not, and blurring the line is how a great deal of harm is justified. Medical staff and chaplains are non-combatants even in uniform.

Afghanistan Matters from Brunssum, Netherlands · CC BY 2.0

Definitions of combatant

  1. 1nouncombatantSomebody taking part in a fight.C1

    “Both combatants agreed to a ceasefire over the holiday.”

combatant is a person.

Where it comes from

Middle French combatant comes from combattre, to fight — com plus battere, to beat.

  1. Middle French

    combatant

  2. Middle English

    combataunt

  3. English, today

    combatant

Inherited from late Middle English combataunt, from Middle French combatant. by surface analysis, combat + -ant. a doublet of combattant.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in A Song of Ice and Fire

Practise this word

combatant in the wild

  • President with broad discretion to determine whether a person may be designated an unlawful enemy combatant under United States law.

    Unlawful combatant

  • While the concept of an unlawful combatant is included in the Third Geneva Convention, the phrase itself does not appear in the document.

    Unlawful combatant

  • In the law of war, a non-combatant is a person who is not or is no longer actively participating in hostilities during a war.

    Non-combatant

  • Under international humanitarian law (IHL), certain non-combatants are classified as protected persons, who are to be protected under laws applicable to international armed conflict at all times.

    Non-combatant

  • A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is used for naval warfare.

    Warship

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

Related words

  • combat