noun

Marshal

MAH-shuhl

noun

A top-ranking military officer in certain countries, roughly equivalent to a five-star general.

"He was promoted to field marshal after the campaign."

A law enforcement officer, especially a federal one, or an official who oversees a public event.

"The fire marshal inspected the building before the concert."

"U.S. marshals escorted the witness into the courthouse."

verb

To organize people, resources, or arguments into proper order, especially in preparation for something.

"She spent the morning marshaling her evidence before the meeting."

"Troops were marshaled at the border before the parade."

How to Use Marshal

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishAs a noun, a high official (military or law-enforcement); as a verb, to gather and organize things carefully.

Common mistake

Don't confuse with "martial" (relating to war) — they sound alike but "marshal" is the person/role, "martial" is the adjective.

Easily confused with

martial →

Common pairings

marshal your thoughts field marshal fire marshal US marshal

Word Forms

marshaled past tense, marshalled past tense, marshals plural, marshals singular

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Fill the Gap

Can you complete this real example?

He was promoted to field _____ after the campaign.

Etymology

From Old French mareschal, originally meaning someone who looked after horses in a noble household — the job grew into overseeing armies and, eventually, ceremonies and law enforcement.

Antonyms

unmarshal decode deserialize unserialize

Related Words

decode

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