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corps

n.
US //ˈkɔɹ// corps
  1. 1 military branch or unit (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Military

    a large branch of the military that does a specific job, or a group of two or more divisions.

    a specialized branch of the armed forces or a tactical unit consisting of two or more divisions. The 's' is silent in the singular form.

    Example

    He joined the Marine Corps right after finishing high school.

    Example

    The general commanded a corps consisting of three infantry divisions and an armored brigade during the spring offensive.

    Usage

    The singular and plural are spelled identically, but the singular is pronounced /kɔːr/ and the plural /kɔːrz/.
    Pitfall
    The army sent two corp to the border.
    The army sent two corps to the border.

    The word 'corps' is spelled with an 's' in both the singular and plural forms.

  2. 2 professional group (n.)
    C1 Advanced Formal

    a group of people who work together in a specific profession or for a common goal.

    an organized body of people associated by a common profession or purpose.

    Example

    The diplomatic corps attended the ceremony to represent their countries.

    Example

    The press corps waited outside the courthouse for hours, hoping to catch a glimpse of the defendant after the verdict.

    Usage

    Often used in fixed phrases like 'diplomatic corps' or 'press corps'.
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  1. 3 ballet group (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Technical Theatre

    the group of dancers in a ballet company who dance together as a background for the main stars.

    the members of a ballet company who dance together as a group and do not perform as soloists.

    Example

    She started her career in the corps de ballet before becoming a lead dancer.

    Example

    The precision of the corps de ballet during the second act was praised by every critic in attendance.

    Usage

    Usually appears in the full French phrase 'corps de ballet'.
  2. 4 dead body (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Archaic Literary

    an old way of spelling 'corpse', meaning a dead body.

    an obsolete orthographic variant of 'corpse'.

    Example

    In the old story, the knight found a cold corps lying in the forest.

    Example

    The poet lamented over the lifeless corps of his fallen comrade, using the archaic spelling to evoke a sense of history.
Etymology 1

From French corps d'armée (literally “army body”), from Latin corpus (“body”). Doublet of corpse and corpus. See also English riff.

Etymology 2

Clipping.

Idioms1 entry

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