marshal

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The Word of the Day for April 11 is:

marshal   \MAR-shul\   noun 
     1 a : a high official in a medieval household  b : a person in charge of 
the ceremonial aspects of a gathering 
     2 : a general officer of the highest military rank 
     3 : an administrative officer (as of a U.S. judicial district) having 
duties similar to a sheriff's
    *4 : the administrative head of a city police or fire department 

Example sentence: 
     The marshal confirmed that the house fires were indeed arson.

Did you know? 
     Although most French words are derived from Latin, a few result from the 
3rd-century Germanic occupation of France, and the early French "mareschal" is 
one such word. "Mareschal" is related to Old High German "marahscalc," formed 
by combining "marah" (horse) and "scalc" (servant). Our "marshal," which comes 
from "mareschal," originally meant "a person in charge of the upkeep of horses" 
when it was borrowed into Middle English, but by the 13th century it described 
a high royal official as well. Eventually came to have other meanings. 

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence. 





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