march

Noun

march (plural marches)

1. A formal, rhythmic way of walking, used especially by soldiers, bands and in ceremonies.
2. A political rally or parade

   Synonyms: protest, parade, rally

   • 2009 October 21, Dennis Hevesi, “Jack Nelson, Journalist, Dies at 80”, in The New York Times, retrieved 12 June 2014:

     Mr. Nelson covered the Selma-to-Montgomery freedom marches, including Bloody Sunday, on March 7, 1965, when 600 marchers were attacked with billy clubs and tear gas.

3. Any song in the genre of music written for marching (see Wikipedia's article on this type of music)
4. Steady forward movement or progression.

   Synonyms: process, advancement, progression

   the march of time

5. (euchre) The feat of taking all the tricks of a hand.

Verb

march (third-person singular simple present marches, present participle marching, simple past and past participle marched)

1. (intransitive) To walk with long, regular strides, as a soldier does.
   • 1864, United States War Department, The 1864 Field Artillery Tactics, Stackpole Books, published 2005, →ISBN, page 120:

     The column marching in double file, the instructor commands: […]

2. (transitive) To cause someone to walk somewhere.
   • 1967, Barbara Sleigh, Jessamy, Sevenoaks, Kent: Bloomsbury, published 1993, →ISBN, page 84:

     The old man heaved himself from the chair, seized Jessamy by her pinafore frill and marched her to the house.

3. To go to war; to make military advances.
   • 1746, Charles Pinot Duclos, The history of Lewis xi. king of France. Transl, page 169:

     The armies drawing constantly nearer to each other, the king advised with his council, whether he should march against the Britons, or sall upon the count of Gharolois.

4. (figurative) To make steady progress.
   • 1981 December 27, Wade Nichols, “Victorian Imperialism”, in Gay Community News, volume 9, number 23, page 5:

     Some say history repeats itself, that time is cyclical. Others cling to the notion of progress and change over time. Apparently Nancy Walker marches to a different drummer — marches backwards, that is. Her ideas on art and society seem quaint and odd on the one hand and, on the other, petty and regressive.

Noun

march (plural marches)

1. (now archaic, historical, often plural) A border region, especially one originally set up to defend a boundary.

   Synonyms: frontier, marchland, borderland

2. (historical) A region at a frontier governed by a marquess.
3. Any of various territories with similar meanings or etymologies in their native languages.

   Synonyms: county palatinate, county palatine

   • 1819, Lord Byron, Don Juan, section IV:

     Juan's companion was a Romagnole, / But bred within the March of old Ancona […].

Verb

march (third-person singular simple present marches, present participle marching, simple past and past participle marched)

1. (intransitive) To have common borders or frontiers

Noun

march (plural marches)

1. (obsolete) Smallage.

References

Synonyms

• choi•etja

Derived terms

• cadfarch (“steed”)
• corfarch (“pony”)
• dynfarch (“centaur”)
• marchddanhadlen (“horse nettle”)
• marchfacrell (“horse mackerel”)
• marchfieri (“dogroses”)
• marchfisglen (“horse mussel”)
• marchog (“knight, horserider”)
• marchrawn (“horsetails”)
• marchredyn (“male-ferns”)
• marchwellt (“couchgrass”)
• marchysgall (“spear thistles”)
• mintys y meirch, marchfintys (“horsemint”)
• cacwn meirch (“hornets”)
• gwenyn meirch (“wasps”)