nounaɪ(ə)rnˌsaɪdī(ə)rnˌsīd
historical 1A nickname for Oliver Cromwell.
- 1.1 (in the English Civil War) a member of Oliver Cromwell's cavalry; a Puritan soldier.
Example sentencesExamples
- In early 1645 the New Model Army was formed, based largely on the Ironsides, who continued as part of the new army.
- Oliver Cromwell's steel-clad Ironsides crushed the Royalist troops of Charles I, the Iron Cross honoured German military valour, the Iron Curtain marked the boundary of cold war national alliances.
2A 19th-century warship with armour plating; an ironclad.
nounaɪ(ə)rnˌsaɪdī(ə)rnˌsīd
1(An epithet of) Edmund II, king of England (reigned 1016).
2Generally (A name for) a person of great physical or mental strength. Also in plural in same sense. Now rare.
3(An epithet of) Oliver Cromwell. Also preceded by old.
4A member of Oliver Cromwell's cavalry; a Puritan soldier. Also in extended use. Now historical.
5Chiefly with lower-case initial. A warship plated with iron; = "ironclad". Now historical.
Origin
Old English; earliest use found in The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. From iron + side.