march

1 of 5

noun (1)

: a border region : frontier
especially : a district originally set up to defend a boundary
usually used in plural
the Welsh marches

march

2 of 5

verb (1)

marched; marching; marches

intransitive verb

: to have common borders or frontiers
a region that marches with Canada in the north and the Pacific in the west

march

3 of 5

verb (2)

ˈmärch How to pronounce march (audio)
 imperatively often  in the military ˈhärch
marched; marching; marches

intransitive verb

1
: to move along steadily usually with a rhythmic stride and in step with others
2
a
: to move in a direct purposeful manner : proceed
b
: to make steady progress : advance
time marches on
3
: to stand in orderly array suggestive of marching

transitive verb

1
: to cause to march
marched the children off to bed
2
: to cover by marching : traverse
marched 10 miles

march

4 of 5

noun (2)

1
: a musical composition that is usually in duple or quadruple time with a strongly accentuated beat and that is designed or suitable to accompany marching
2
a(1)
: the action of marching
(2)
: the distance covered within a specific period of time by marching
(3)
: a regular measured stride or rhythmic step used in marching
b
: forward movement : progress
the march of a movie toward the climax
3
: an organized procession of demonstrators who are supporting or protesting something
marchlike adjective

March

5 of 5

noun (3)

: the third month of the Gregorian calendar
Phrases
on the march
: moving steadily : advancing

Examples of march in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
On Saline’s first drive, Carr — who nearly had his first throw get picked off — went 6-for-6 for 55 yards as the nine-play, 80-yard march was capped by a 15-yard TD run by Rush. Brad Emons, Detroit Free Press, 25 Aug. 2023 Blake’s grandfather, Jacob Blake Sr., was a prominent minister and civil rights leader in the Chicago area who helped organize a march and spoke in support of comprehensive housing law in Evanston, Ill., days after the 1968 assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Stephanie Pagones, Fox News, 24 Aug. 2020 As long as some leafy growth is left behind the plant will continue its unceasing march toward taking over the whole herb bed. Paul Stephen, ExpressNews.com, 4 July 2020 Organizers of the march were shocked at the massive turnout; at a rally for Polanco organized shortly after her death, only 600 or 700 people showed up. Photo: Michael Noble Jr./getty Images., refinery29.com, 17 June 2020 The march was organized on social media and drew a diverse crowd of old and young. John Delapp, Houston Chronicle, 7 June 2020 Demo was a march that looped the city several times. NBC News, 3 June 2020 While Prigozhin’s march is publicly being treated as an internal Russia affair for now, nuclear safety is the top issue that could draw in multilateral organizations like the United nations, according to people familiar with the matter. Time, 27 June 2023 Prigozhin was seen Saturday leaving Rostov, the city in southern Russia his forces had seized hours earlier before starting a march toward Moscow. WSJ, 27 June 2023
Verb
At the latest of the now weekly anti-government protests in central Tel Aviv, thousands again marched down Kaplan Street, blocking traffic along major intersections, demonstrating against Netanyahu’s coalition. Clarissa Ward, CNN, 20 Mar. 2024 For 300 years, Detroiters allegedly have marched the streets to scare away Nain Rouge and ensure good fortune. Detroit Free Press, 20 Mar. 2024 In the Dartmouth and U.S.C. cases, lawyers on both sides have compared football and basketball players to high school players, professional athletes, marching band drummers, graduate student teachers, dining hall workers, cheerleaders, hot dog vendors and ticket takers. Billy Witz, New York Times, 18 Mar. 2024 Thousands of parade goers flocked to lower downtown Denver to enjoy the parade which had over 120 floats and entries that featured dancers, marching bands, dignitaries, police and fire departments, clowns, car clubs and many other organizations. Andy Cross, The Denver Post, 17 Mar. 2024 Labor rights groups in Thailand marched to the Government House to petition for better work conditions, and activists marching against violence in the Philippine capital were stopped by police near the presidential palace, sparking a brief scuffle. Angela Charlton and Jade Le Deley, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024 Unforgiving, stubborn, and extremely vulnerable, the families marched once a month through central Mexico City, putting themselves in front of television cameras, shouting, gathering at the entrance to government buildings, and refusing to budge, demanding the return of their sons. Alma Guillermoprieto, The New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2024 Mandarina was buried with honors in his hometown, hundreds lining the streets to say goodbye as bullfighters and bands marched in the funeral procession. Toby Muse, Rolling Stone, 3 Mar. 2024 Large crowds have marched across Los Angeles — and the globe —-following the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas against Israel. Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'march.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English marche, from Anglo-French, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German marha boundary — more at mark

Verb (2)

Middle English, from Middle French marchier to trample, march, from Old French, to trample, probably of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German marcōn to mark

Noun (3)

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin martius, from martius of Mars, from Mart-, Mars

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun (2)

circa 1572, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of march was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near march

Cite this Entry

“March.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/march. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

march

1 of 4 noun
1
: a border region : frontier
2
: a district originally set up to defend a boundary
usually used in plural
the Welsh marches

march

2 of 4 verb
1
: to move along with a steady regular stride especially in step with others
2
: to move in a direct purposeful manner : progress
marcher noun

march

3 of 4 noun
1
a
: the action of marching
b
: the distance covered within a period of time by marching
c
: a regular even step used in marching
2
: forward movement : progress
the march of time
3
: a musical piece with a strong regular rhythm that is suitable to march to

March

4 of 4 noun
: the third month of the year
Etymology

Noun

Middle English March "the third month," from early French march (same meaning), derived from Latin martius "of (the god) Mars"

Word Origin
One of the gods worshipped by the ancient Romans was a war god named Mars. In his honor they named one of the months of the year martius, which means "of Mars" or "belonging to Mars." The Latin martius later became march in early French, and it was from early French that the word came into English.

Medical Definition

march

noun
: the progression of epileptic activity through the motor centers of the cerebral cortex that is manifested in localized convulsions in first one and then an adjacent part of the body
the Jacksonian march of convulsions

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