soudeour

Middle English

Alternative forms

• saudeor, sauder, sawder, souder, soudeur, soudiour, soudour, souldeour, sowdiour
• saudeour, saudiour, saudoier, saugeour, saugere, sawdeoure, sawdier, sawdioure, sawdyor, sawdyour, sawgeour, sodeour, sodiour, sodyour, sodyoure, sojour, soldeour, soudeor, soudeer, soudyour, souldeiour, souldioure, souldyour, sowdear, sowdeoure, sowdeiour, sowdyar, sowdyor, sowdyore, sowdyour, sowgeour, sowldeour (Late Middle English)

Etymology

From a combination of two distinct Old French nouns:

• Old French soldeier, soudoier, from Medieval Latin soldātārius, extension of soldārius, soldārius; equivalent to soude (“wages”) +‎ -er.
• Old French soldeior, from Medieval Latin solidātor, solidātōrem; equivalent to soude (“wages”) +‎ -our.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌsɔu̯d(i)ˈuːr/, /ˌsɔu̯d(i)ˈeːr/, /ˈsɔu̯d(i)ur/, /ˈsɔu̯d(i)ər/, /sɔd-/, /sau̯d-/

Noun

soudeour (plural soudeours)

1. A soldier; a member of an organised army.
2. A mercenary; a hired soldier.
3. (figurative) A fighter for God, Satan, etc.

Descendants

• English: soldier (dialectal sodger, soger)
• Scots: sodger

References

• “soudiǒur, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.