janissary

noun

jan·​is·​sary ˈja-nə-ˌser-ē 

-ˌzer-

variants or less commonly janizary

plural janissaries also janizaries

1

often capitalized : a soldier of an elite corps of Turkish troops organized in the 14th century and abolished in 1826

2

: a member of a group of loyal or subservient troops, officials, or supporters

Examples of janissary in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Süleyman sent him 2,000 janissaries, the elite of the Ottoman army. —National Geographic, 8 Oct. 2019

Word History

Etymology

Italian gianizzero, from Turkish yeniçeri, from yeni new + çeri soldier

First Known Use

1529, in the meaning defined at sense 1