dragoon
/drə'gu:n/ Cách viết khác : (dragon) /drə'gu:n/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun:
- A heavily armed cavalry soldier: A dragoon was historically a member of a European military unit. These soldiers were originally mounted infantry who used horses for mobility but often fought on foot.
- A fierce or intimidating person: By extension, a dragoon can refer to a person who is aggressively forceful or coercive.
Verb:
- To force someone into doing something through coercion or threats: To dragoon someone is to compel them to act against their will, using pressure, intimidation, or crude methods.
- To subjugate by military force: This meaning involves using troops to suppress or dominate a population.
Examples of Usage
Noun:
- The dragoon charged forward on his horse. (The heavily armed cavalry soldier charged forward on his horse.)
- He was a real dragoon in the boardroom, intimidating everyone into agreement. (He was a truly intimidating person in the boardroom.)
Verb:
- The manager tried to dragoon the team into working over the weekend. (The manager tried to force the team into working over the weekend.)
- The regime dragooned the population into submission. (The regime subjugated the population using military force.)
Advanced Usage
- Historical Context: The term originates from a type of firearm (a "dragon") carried by these troops, linking to the idea of fierceness.
- Figurative Use: The verb form is almost always used figuratively in modern English to describe non-military coercion.
- She refused to be dragooned into signing the contract. (She refused to be coerced into signing the contract.)
Variants and Related Words
- Dragooning (gerund/noun): The act of coercing someone.
- His dragooning of the staff led to low morale.
- Dragooned (past tense/participle): Having been forced.
- They felt dragooned into attending the event.
Synonyms
- Verb: Coerce, compel, strong-arm, bully, browbeat, intimidate, force.
- Noun: Cavalryman, trooper; enforcer, bully.
Related Phrases
- To dragoon someone into something: This is the standard construction for the verb.
- He dragooned his brother into helping him move. (He coerced his brother into helping him move.)
Related Idioms
- None directly from "dragoon": The word itself is often used in an idiomatic way to mean "to force," but there are no common English idioms built specifically around the word "dragoon."
Noun
- a member of a European military unit formerly composed of heavily armed cavalrymen
Verb
- subjugate by imposing troops
- compel by coercion, threats, or crude means
- They sandbagged him to make dinner for everyone