Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Variant of janissary.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. One of a former body of Turkish infantry, constituting the Sultan's guard and the main standing army, first organized in the fourteenth century, and until the latter part of the seventeenth century largely recruited from compulsory conscripts and converts taken from the Rayas or Christian subjects. In later times Turks and other Mohammedans joined the corps on account of the various privileges attached to it. The body became large, and very powerful and turbulent, often controlling the destiny of the government; and after a revolt purposely provoked by the Sultan Mahmoud II. in 1826, many thousand janizaries were massacred, and the organization was abolished.
- n. A common name of Clepticus parræ, a labroid fish of the West Indian fauna.
Wiktionary
- n. alternative spelling of janissary.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A soldier of a privileged military class, which formed the nucleus of the Turkish infantry, but was suppressed in 1826.
Examples
“Having nothing else to amuse his solitude, he employed himself in contriving some plan to gratify his curiosity, in despite of the sedulous caution of Janet and the old Highland janizary, for he had never seen the young fellow since the first morning.”
“It was the Turk -- a fellow who had been a janizary, and had the reputation of not knowing what fear was.”
“Down by the barn a tired janizary pumped water into a trough for two tired mules still in harness.”
“When Arthur left with Grahame Mr. McMeeter had just begun an address which described the policeman as a satellite, a janizary, and a pretorian of Rome.”
“Having nothing else to amuse his solitude, he employed himself in contriving some plan to gratify his curiosity, in spite of the sedulous caution of Janet and the old Highland janizary, for he had never seen the young fellow since the first morning.”
“Tell him of lovelorn hearts, of the "worm I 'the bud," of the mental impalement upon Cupid's arrow, like that of a giaour upon the spear of a janizary, and he can only think of lack of exercise, of tightlacing, and slippers in winter.”
“Both the janizary and the skipper arose as the others entered the room.”
“I advised him not to trouble you farther about Jack Sheppard," answered the supposed janizary.”
“Why, how the devil did you happen to guess that?" cried the janizary.”
“How soon do you expect Mishter Vudd?" inquired the janizary, tauntingly.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘janizary’.
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phrontistery - j
from phrontistery.info
jabberwock, jabot, jacent, jacinthe, jack, jackanapes, jack-block, jack-cross-tree, jackstaff, jackstay, jackyard, jacobin and 137 more...
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Scrabble words which start with the l...
juvenile, juvenal, jutty, jute, jut, justness, justly, justle, justify, justice, juster, just and 534 more...
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colleen's words
yellow, green, pie, blue, fur, people, incense, book, brown, avuncular, mountain, fog and 1316 more...
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summer words 2009
how many words can I make mine this summer?
largess, hoyden, catholic, fornicatress, quean, slattern, bildungsroman, sybaritic, descresent, nodus, frittle, callipygian and 529 more...
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the omnibus
preponderance, idioglossia, acumen, heteronym, flux, anacoluthon, metonymy, impetus, constellation, exegesis, revelatory, cloistered and 877 more...
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Trump that synonym!
Better alternatives for common words.
ex cathedra, screed, de rigueur, palpable, wheedle, piebald, incongruity, cassandra, xantippe, ebullient, exuberant, fainéant and 178 more...
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My Modern Job in the Past
Words I come across at work.
Now stripped of most military terms, which have found a new home on the list Historical Military Terms of Interest. See also (and add to!) hilarious misspe...chaise-marine, delft, delftware, quince, tympan, cresset, navvy, venn diagram, poop deck, apothecary, heliotrope, millinery and 294 more...
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Ada, or Ardor ~Vladmir Nabokov
granoblastically, cicerone, aerocable, anachronistically, parvis, athwart, mnemonic, squitteroo, nusshaus, edelweiss, intermezzo, cabriole and 183 more...
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perhapsolutely's Words
polyradiculoneuro..., abulia, abubble, abscission, abaft, zareba, abatis, abigail, abiogenesis, ablate, ablaut, abo and 1705 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for janizary.
wildrose I think they're the same word just variants in spelling. I always knew the definition as 'an elite Turkish guard' as well. 'Loyal supporter' sounds like some one tried to simplify. If you call a person janissary these days chances are you don't mean literally but rather showing a similar loyalty (revolts included, of course). Jan 11, 2008
chained_bear There's a fairly well-known fife tune from the 18th century called "Janizary's March." I heard that the term comes from the particularly feared, "special forces"-type soldiers of the Ottoman Empire. I noticed that the page janissary has a definition of "loyal supporter." Seems like that probably comes from the same root, if not meaning exactly the same thing. Jan 11, 2008