phalanx

Pronunciation: /ˈfeɪˌlæŋks/

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun any of the bones of the fingers or toes
  2. noun any closely ranked crowd of people
  3. noun a body of troops in close array

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin phalanx or Ancient Greek φάλαγξ (phálanx, “battle order, array”). Doublet of phalange, planch, plancha, planche, and plank.

In classic literature

Semantic network

Broader (hypernyms)
bone

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