Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Slang A French soldier, especially in World War I.
Wiktionary
- n. A French infantryman during the First World War
WordNet 3.0
- n. a French soldier (especially in World War I)
- n. thick stew made of rice and chicken and small game; southern U.S.
Etymologies
- French poilu ("hairy") (Wiktionary)
- French, hairy, tough, poilu, from Old French pelu, hairy, from Vulgar Latin *pilūtus, from Latin pilus, hair. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“What is the slang meaning of the French word "poilu"?”
“And sometimes the poilu is a little confused, writing a charming letter of thanks to "Monsieur Lafayette" himself.”
“The poilu was a middle-aged man, and very drunk on some foul spirit which he had bought in a low cafe down by the river.”
“Her poilu is her beau ideal of faith and courage, of patriotism and devotion to the principles of human rights, of cheerfulness and hopefulness, of invincibility in that his cause is just.”
“There is never a man turned away from its doors, for where is the "poilu" or where is the "Tommy" who is not always ready with a smile and a laugh and a song?”
“Do you know of any terms, expressions, or other meanings of today's word "poilu”
“Some important themes featured in this collection are disease and wartime, the image of the German, the “poilu,” or French soldier, bank loans, Marianne (a symbol of victory), allegiance with the United States, the “ghost army” and women and children.”
Creating, Managing & Pres. Dig. Assets: University of Illinois French WWI Poster Collection
“After decades of rejection as a symbol of outdated patriotism, the poilu (French slang for infantryman) has become a cultural icon in recent years, celebrated in films like "Joyeux Noel" (2005) and in books like "Lettres des Poilus," which has sold more than 300,000 copies since publication in 1998.”
The Wall Street Journal: Collectors Vie For World War I Memorabilia
“Then in 2008 an official ceremony was held to mark the death of Lazare Ponticelli, the "last poilu.”
The Wall Street Journal: Collectors Vie For World War I Memorabilia
“Bien sur sans video a l'appui vous ne comprendrez rien a qui etait cet inconnu poilu mais ce n'est pas grave!”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘poilu’.
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Logolepsy
"Luciferous Logolepsy is a collection of over 9,000 obscure English words. Though the definition of an 'English' word might seem to be straightforward, it is not. There exist so many adopted, deriv...
Anschauung, Areopagus, Argus, Briarean, Dei gratia, Dei judicium, Deo volente, Duecento, Foehn, Geflugelte Worte, Gegenschein, Hakenkreuz and 9230 more...
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Oily
Words and phrases that have "oil" in them.
oil, oily, olive oil, crude oil, toil, boil, trefoil, foil, roil, broil, coil, soil and 70 more...
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Military Matters
words of mass (or minor) destruction
caltrop, stylet, chassepot, baldric, rewet, blunderbuss, musket, flintlock, howitzer, ordnance, casque, dragoon and 148 more...
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Soldiers and Sailors
Types and nicknames.
point man, legionary, man-at-arms, trooper, janissary, marine, lobsterback, redcoat, blackcoat, guardsman, billman, foot soldier and 95 more...
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Addenda to the 1923 Printing of Webst...
Many of these words first came into common usage during World War I, and reflect not only the technological and scientific leaps of the early part of the 20th century, but the new experience of glo...
abri, ace, acidosis, airdrome, air fleet, airplane, air raid, airworthy, altimeter, anaphylaxis, anociassociation, anti-aircraft and 292 more...
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looked up
Words I've come across while reading and looked up in the dictionary.
deesis, pendentive, revetment, aedicule, stemma, patera, ephod, entrepot, corbel, exedra, volute, archivolt and 1408 more...
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cooked words
cook, cuisine, kitchen, quittor, apricot, precocious, biscotto, biscuit, charcuterie, concoct, decoct, ricotta and 89 more...
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Military
skunk works, armiger, coistrel, chasseur, bogatyr, vexillum, vivandière, cantiniere, sutler, fantassin, habergeon, cascabel and 65 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for poilu.

fbharjo It is a stew, after all; ergo all mixed up Oct 29, 2009
mollusque I think Wordnet has this wrong; it should be purloo in the stew meaning. I can't find poilu used with any meaning but soldier in Google Books. Oct 29, 2009
bilby Rice and dice! Oct 29, 2009
fbharjo also a rice and small game stew in the southern states of the US Oct 29, 2009