Soldier vs. Militant — What's the Difference?

A soldier is one who fights as part of a military. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer.

The English word militant is both an adjective and a noun, and is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Latin "warrior" meaning "to serve as a soldier".

One who serves in an army.

Fighting or warring.

An enlisted person or a noncommissioned officer.

Having a combative character; aggressive, especially in the service of a cause

An active, loyal, or militant follower of an organization.

A fighting, warring, or aggressive person or party.

A nonreproductive ant or termite that has a large head and powerful jaws.

Fighting or disposed to fight; belligerent, warlike.

One of a group of honeybees that swarm in defense of a hive.

Aggressively supporting of a political or social cause; adamant, combative.

To be or serve as a soldier.

(obsolete) A soldier, a combatant.

To make a show of working in order to escape punishment.

An entrenched or aggressive adherent to a particular cause, now especially a member of a particular ideological faction.

A member of a ground-based army, of any rank, but especially an enlisted member.

Specifically, someone who supports the Trotskyist political view expressed in the newspaper Militant, or who engages in aggressive left-wing politics.

An enlisted member of a military service, as distinguished from a commissioned officer.

Engaged in warfare; fighting; combating; serving as a soldier.

A guardsman.

A militant reformer

A member of the Salvation Army.

Engaged in war;

A low-ranking gangster or member of a gang, especially the mafia, who engages in physical conflict.

Showing a fighting disposition without self-seeking;

A piece of buttered bread (or toast), cut into a long thin strip for dipping into a soft-boiled egg.

A term of approbation for a young boy.

Someone who fights or toils well.

The red or cuckoo gurnard (Chelidonichthys cuculus).

One of the asexual polymorphic forms of termites, in which the head and jaws are very large and strong. The soldiers serve to defend the nest.

A red herring cured kipper with flesh turned red.

(intransitive) To continue steadfast; to keep striving.

(intransitive) To serve as a soldier.

(intransitive) To intentionally restrict labor productivity; to work at the slowest rate that goes unpunished.

To take a ride on (another person's horse) without permission.

One who is engaged in military service as an officer or a private; one who serves in an army; one of an organized body of combatants.

Especially, a private in military service, as distinguished from an officer.

A brave warrior; a man of military experience and skill, or a man of distinguished valor; - used by way of emphasis or distinction.

The red or cuckoo gurnard (Trigla pini.

One of the asexual polymorphic forms of white ants, or termites, in which the head and jaws are very large and strong. The soldiers serve to defend the nest. See Termite.

To serve as a soldier.

To make a pretense of doing something, or of performing any task.

An enlisted man or woman who serves in an army;

A wingless sterile ant or termite having a large head and powerful jaws adapted for defending the colony

Serve as a soldier in the military