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POILU

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poi⋅lu

  [pwah-loo; Fr. pwa-ly]
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–noun, plural -lus  [-looz; Fr. -ly] .
a French common soldier.
Origin:
1910–15; < F, in earlier slang: tough individual, tough, brave, lit., hairy, haired; MF, OF pelu (cf. plew ) < VL *pilūtus, equiv. to L pil(us) hair + VL *-ūtus, for L -ātus -ate 1 (e > oi by influence of poil hair < L pilus)
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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poi·lu   (pwä-lü')   
n.   Slang
A French soldier, especially in World War I.

[French, hairy, tough, poilu, from Old French pelu, hairy, from Vulgar Latin *pilūtus, from Latin pilus, hair.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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