Other forms: marched, marching, marches
March is the third month, the one where the daylight finally pulls ahead of the dark. Wet boots, wind that takes the door out of your hand, the first daffodils, the clocks about to change.
The same letters with a small m give a verb: to march is to walk in step with a straight back, and soldiers march, brass bands march, and a furious parent marches you to the head teacher's office. As a noun, a march is a walk of protest — thousands of people, a lot of homemade signs — and it is also the music written for feet, all drums and beat. Time marches on, and an army marches on its stomach. Someone given their marching orders has been told to go. Note the capital letter: the month is March, the walking is march.
1nounmarchThe third month of the year, between February and April.
“Her birthday falls in the first week of March.”
2verbfirmTo walk with firm regular steps, in step with other people.
“The soldiers marched across the square in the rain.”
3noundemonstrationAn organised walk by a crowd of people making a protest or a demand.
“Thousands joined the march through the city centre.”
synonyms: demonstration
4verbsomewhereTo walk somewhere fast and with determination, or to force someone to go there.
“She marched into the office and asked who had signed it.”
5nounmusicA piece of music with a strong regular beat, written for marching to.
“The band played a slow march behind the coffin.”
Too few real examples of this word to estimate which sense is commonest.
march is a month.
The verb march came through Middle French marcher, 'to march, to walk', from Old French marchier, 'to stride, to trample', from Frankish markōn, 'to mark, to press with the foot', and Proto-Germanic markōną, 'to mark'. To march was to leave your mark in the ground, which puts it in the same family as English mark. The month is a separate word with a history of its own.
Proto-Germanic
*markōną — to mark
Frankish
*markōn — to mark, mark out, to press with the foot
Old French
marchier — to stride, to march, to trample
Middle French
marcher — to march, walk
Middle English
marchen
English, today
march
From Middle English marchen, from Middle French marcher (“to march, walk”), from Old French marchier (“to stride, to march, to trample”), from Frankish markōn (“to mark, mark out, to press with the foot”), from Proto-Germanic markōną (“to mark”). Akin to Old English mearc, ġemearc (“mark, boundary”). Compare mark, from Old English mearcian. Compare typologically сле́довать (akin to след). Also compare пятно́ (<~ пята́).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA