phalanx
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
phalanx¹
- /ˈfælæŋks/ Australia, UK
- /fəˈlæŋks/ Australia, UK
- /ˈfeɪˌlæŋks/ US
Rhymes with -ælæŋks, -æŋks, -eɪlæŋks
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Latin phalanx or Ancient Greek φάλαγξ (phálanx, “battle order; array”). Doublet of phalange, planch, plancha, planche, and plank.
noun phalanxes · phalanges
- An ancient Greek and Macedonian military unit that consisted of several ranks and files (lines) of soldiers in close array with joined shields and long spears.
- A large group of people, animals or things, compact or closely massed, or tightly knit and united in common purpose. The monarch hath gone, but his rocky throne Still rests on its frowning base; Its motionless guards rise in phalanx lone, And nought save the winds through their helmets that moan, And none but those bosoms and hearts of stone Sigh o'er a fallen race.
- A Fourierite utopian community; a phalanstery. [Charles Fourier] calculated that if precisely 1,620 men, women and children were collected in a 6,000-acre phalanx, they would — all by merrily following their individual passions — end up satisfying all the phalanx’s essential needs.
-
One of the bones of the finger or toe.
Similar: phalange, phalangeal
- A bundle of stamens, in diadelphous and polyadelphous flowers.
Phalanx²
proper noun
- The brand name of a radar-controlled rapid fire 20mm Gatling-type machine gun, the Phalanx CIWS (pronounced see-wiz), deployed on U.S. Navy ships as a last line of defense against antiship cruise missiles.
Translations
Every language
noun ancient Greek military unit
| Español | falange |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | ファランクス farankusu |
| 中文 | 方陣 /方阵 fāngzhèn |
| Português | falange |
| Français | phalange |
| Deutsch | Phalanx |
| Italiano | falange |
| Ελληνικά | φάλαγγα fálanga |
| Română | falangă |
| Русский | фала́нга falánga |
| Tiếng Việt | phalanx |
noun large group of animals, plants, or people
| Italiano | orda |
|---|
noun finger or toe bone
| Español | falange |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 지골 jigol |
| 日本語 | 指骨 shikotsu, 趾骨 shikotsu |
| 中文 | 指骨 zhǐgǔ, 趾骨 zhǐgǔ |
| Português | falange |
| Français | phalange |
| Deutsch | Fingerglied, Zehenglied |
| Italiano | falange |
| Ελληνικά | φάλαγγα fálanga |
| Română | falangă |
| Русский | фала́нга falánga, суста́в па́льца sustáv pálʹca |
| العربية | سُلَامَى sulāmā, سُلَامِيَّة sulāmiyya |
| עברית | גָּלִיל galíl |
Talk about this word "phalanx." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/phalanx. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. phalanx. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/phalanx "phalanx." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/phalanx.Cite this
@misc{phalanx_2026,
title = {phalanx},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/phalanx},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
