marshal
/ˈmɑːʃ(ə)l
/noun
1An officer of the highest rank in the armed forces of some countries: [as title]: Marshal Tito...
- Now, fully half of Napoleon's marshals had started their careers as common soldiers.
- Now, half of Napoleon's marshals had once been common soldiers.
- In 1935 officers' ranks were re-established, including the rank of marshal for the top five commanders.
1.1British historical A high-ranking officer of state.He was a marshal there from 1652 to 1661, and Deputy Magistrate from 1661 to 1664.
2US A federal or municipal law-enforcement officer.Federal marshals estimated that the birdmen, in violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, killed thousands of birds over a five-year span....
- Federal marshals are guarding overseas flights, and state troopers are patrolling trains.
- However, when the justices travel around the country, they are sometimes protected by federal marshals rather than Supreme Court cops.
2.1The head of a police department.They were refused entry to the tavern and immediately went to the Canton Station in search of the Police Marshal.
2.2North American The head of a fire department.As building inspectors, fire marshals and riot police rally against them, the squatters continue to fight for decent shelter and survival....
- The authority for fire regulations for each state is governed either by the fire marshal or the state department of health.
- A local fire department or state fire marshal's office can provide guidance on the minimum legal requirements.
3An official responsible for supervising sports events, and for controlling crowds in other public events: ground marshals joined the referee and touch judges in trying to regain order...
- More than 400 people will be supporting the event, many being reunited after working as marshals during the Commonwealth Games.
- Surveys show that drivers and the public all want marshals and someone has to pay.
- They appoint their own marshals, who control the annual get-together.
4(In the UK) an official accompanying a judge on circuit to act as secretary and personal assistant.He knew that social status depended on landed wealth, so he fixed high salaries for marshals, judges, and bishops, and membership of legislative or representative bodies was limited to the rich....
- The judge, marshal supervisor, prosecutor and other participants develop a plan designed to anticipate the security needs during trial.
verb (marshals, marshalling, marshalled; US marshals, marshaling, marshaled) [with object]
1Assemble and arrange (a group of people, especially troops) in order: the general marshalled his troops...
- He recruited and marshalled the troops and issued their orders.
- Behind his affable, bluff demeanour and disingenuous screen image, one senses he is the master of all he surveys, not quite the lone reporter, rather a general marshalling an army of researchers.
- He scored 41 runs, took a diving catch and put in a tight bowling spell - and generally marshalled his troops effectively throughout.
Synonyms
gather, gather together, assemble, collect, muster, mass, amass, call together, draw up, line up, align, array, organize, group, set/put in order, set/put into position, arrange, deploy, position, order;
dispose, rank, mobilize, rally, round up;
Medicine triage
1.1Bring together and arrange in order (facts, ideas, objects, etc.): he paused for a moment, as if marshalling his thoughts...
- And marshal your facts and arrange your thoughts, so you can present a logical argument to the readers.
- He marshals facts and arguments in numbered order.
- These facts are marshalled to produce the opposite of the truth.
Synonyms
usher, guide, escort, conduct, lead, shepherd, steer, take
1.2Position (rolling stock) in the correct order.The time frame to switch out these many local jobs and marshal the outbound train was tight and required precision work in a small yard....
- Soon this type of locomotive proved too light for the heavy trains that were being marshalled and were eventually assigned to lighter work, shunting scrap and ingot buggies.
- The site also has a secure hard stacking and truck marshalling area.
1.3Direct the movement of (an aircraft) on the ground at an airport.As they marshaled the aircraft to its final parking spot, the number three brake became engulfed in flames....
- A reflective vest provides increased visibility needed during aircraft marshalling that allows safe flightline operations.
- After being marshalled in, Matt cut the engine.
2 Heraldry Combine (coats of arms) to indicate marriage, descent, or the bearing of office: the quarters include those appearing on the Warwick Plate, but in addition there is marshalled that of Grey...
- However, they were often infringed when two or more different arms were combined (or marshaled) within one shield and two tinctures that should in principle not touch each other necessarily became adjacent.
- Thus, when more than one different coat of arm is marshaled on a shield, through descent from heraldic heiresses, it was placed 'quarterly'.
- The insignia of an order or decoration should not be displayed with a shield on which the arms of two spouses are marshaled, because the honor is specific to the person to whom it was granted, not to his or her spouse.
Derivatives
marshaller
- He is working as an aircraft marshaller at the city's airport alongside personnel from Canada, Germany and the United States.
- Soon, car marshallers from the nearby assembly plant began independently parking their newly manufactured Mustangs in the test lot.
- The workers involved include firefighters, security staff, engineers, clerical staff and airfield marshallers.
marshalship
- The title carried with it the hereditary marshalship of Scotland.
- And after that they spoke only of the future, when the first period of his Marshalship should be over and he should be free to take his bride back to the fields and woods of Ivarsdale, and the gray old Tower on the hill.
- She was given a marshallship of her duchies army because she made good tactical recommendations and talked to her duke regularly.
Origin
Middle English (denoting a high-ranking officer of state): from Old French mareschal 'farrier, commander', from late Latin mariscalcus, from Germanic elements meaning 'horse' (compare with mare1) and 'servant'.
mare from Old English:
Old English mearh ‘horse’, mere ‘mare’ are from a Germanic base with related words in Celtic languages meaning ‘stallion’. The sense ‘male horse’ died out at the end of the Middle English period. The same root lies behind marshal (Middle English), originally someone in charge of horses.