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marshal

 - 7 dictionary results

mar⋅shal

  [mahr-shuhl] noun, verb, -shaled, -shal⋅ing or (especially British) -shalled, -shal⋅ling.
Use marshal in a Sentence
–noun
1. a military officer of the highest rank, as in the French and some other armies. Compare field marshal.
2. an administrative officer of a U.S. judicial district who performs duties similar to those of a sheriff.
3. a court officer serving processes, attending court, giving personal service to the judges, etc.
4. the chief of a police or fire department in some cities.
5. a police officer in some communities.
6. sky marshal.
7. a higher officer of a royal household or court.
8. an official charged with the arrangement or regulation of ceremonies, parades, etc.: the marshal of the St. Patrick's Day parade.
–verb (used with object)
9. to arrange in proper order; set out in an orderly manner; arrange clearly: to marshal facts; to marshal one's arguments.
10. to array, as for battle.
11. to usher or lead ceremoniously: Their host marshaled them into the room.
12. Heraldry. to combine (two or more coats of arms) on a single escutcheon.
Origin:
1225–75; ME marshal, syncopated var. of mareschal < OF < Gmc; cf. OHG marahscalh groom, equiv. to marah horse (see mare 1 ) + scalh servant, c. OE scealc

Related forms:
mar⋅shal⋅cy, mar⋅shal⋅ship, noun
mar⋅shal⋅er; especially British, mar⋅shal⋅ler, noun

Synonyms:
9. order, dispose; convoke. See gather.

Antonyms:
9. scatter.

Mar⋅shall

  [mahr-shuhl]
–noun
1. Alfred, 1842–1924, English economist.
2. George C(at⋅lett)  [kat-lit] , 1880–1959, U.S. general and statesman: Secretary of State 1947–49; Nobel peace prize 1953.
3. John, 1755–1835, U.S. jurist and statesman: Chief Justice of the U.S. 1801–35.
4. Thomas Riley, 1854–1925, vice president of the U.S. 1913–21.
5. Thur⋅good  [thur-good] , 1908–93, U.S. jurist: associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court 1967–91.
6. a city in NE Texas. 24,921.
7. a town in central Missouri. 12,781.
8. a town in SW Minnesota. 11,161.
9. Also, Marshal. a male given name.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To marshal
mar·shal   (mär'shəl)   
n.  

    1. A military officer of the highest rank in some countries.

    2. A field marshal.

    3. A U.S. federal officer of a judicial district who carries out court orders and discharges duties similar to those of a sheriff.

    4. A city law enforcement officer in the United States who carries out court orders.

    5. The head of a police or fire department in the United States.

    1. A U.S. federal officer of a judicial district who carries out court orders and discharges duties similar to those of a sheriff.

    2. A city law enforcement officer in the United States who carries out court orders.

    3. The head of a police or fire department in the United States.

  3. A person in charge of a parade or ceremony.

  4. A high official in a royal court, especially one aiding the sovereign in military affairs.

v.   mar·shaled also mar·shalled, mar·shal·ing also mar·shal·ling, mar·shals also mar·shals

v.   tr.

  1. To arrange or place (troops, for example) in line for a parade, maneuver, or review.

  2. To arrange, place, or set in methodical order: marshal facts in preparation for an exam. See Synonyms at arrange.

  3. To enlist and organize: trying to marshal public support.

  4. To guide ceremoniously; conduct or usher.

v.   intr.

  1. To take up positions in a military formation.

  2. To take form or order: facts marshaling as research progressed.


[Middle English, from Old French mareschal, of Germanic origin.]
mar'shal·cy, mar'shal·ship' n.
Word History: Hard-riding marshals of the Wild West in pursuit of criminals reemphasize the relationship of the word marshal with horses. The Germanic ancestor of our word marshal is a compound made up of *marhaz, "horse" (related to the source of our word mare), and *skalkaz, "servant," meaning as a whole literally "horse servant," hence "groom." The Frankish descendant of this Germanic word, *marahskalk, came to designate a high royal official and also a high military commander—not surprising given the importance of the horse in medieval warfare. Along with many other Frankish words, *marahskalk was borrowed into Old French by about 800; some centuries later, when the Normans established a French-speaking official class in England, the Old French word came with them. In English, marshal is first recorded in 1218, as a surname (still surviving in the spelling Marshall); its first appearance as a common noun was in 1258, in the sense "high officer of the royal court." The word was also applied to this high royal official's deputies, who were officers of courts of law, and it continued to designate various officials involved with courts of law and law enforcement, including the horseback-riding marshals we are familiar with in the United States.
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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Word Origin & History

marshal 
1218, from O.Fr. mareschal, originally "stable officer, horse tender, groom" (Frankish L. mariscaluis) from Frank. *marhskalk, lit. "horse-servant" (cf. O.H.G. marahscalc "groom"), from P.Gmc. *markhaz "horse" (see mare (1)) + *skalkaz "servant" (cf. Du. schalk "rogue, wag," Goth. skalks "servant"). Cognate with O.E. horsþegn. For development history, cf. constable. The verb "to arrange for fighting" is from 1587.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: mar·shal
Pronunciation: 'mär-sh&l
Function: noun
1 : a ministerial officer appointed for each judicial district of the U.S. to execute the process of the courts and perform various duties similar to those of a sheriff
2 : a law officer in some cities (as New York) of the U.S. who is entrusted with particular duties (as serving the process of justice of the peace courts)
3 : the administrative head of the police or esp. fire department in some cities of the U.S.

Main Entry: marshal
Variant: also marshall
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: -shaled also -shalled; -shal·ing also -shal·ling
: to fix the order of (assets) with respect to liability or availability for payment of obligations; also : to fix the order of (as liens or remedies) with respect to priority against a debtor's assets —see also MARSHALING
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Encyclopedia

marshal

in some past and present armies, including those of Britain, France, Germany, Russia or the Soviet Union, and China, the highest ranking officer. The rank evolved from the title of marescalci (masters of the horse) of the early Frankish kings. The importance of cavalry in medieval warfare led to the marshalship being associated with a command position; this rank came to include the duties of keeping order at court and in camp and of deciding questions of chivalry. As a military leader the marshal was originally subordinate to the constable in the various states of western Europe. By the 13th century, however, the marshal was rapidly coming to prominence as a commander of the royal forces and a great officer of state

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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