rifleman
rifleman Lexical Profile
rifleman Game Scores & Validity
• noun
An infantry soldier armed with a rifle, or a person skilled in shooting with a rifle.
"The museum exhibit featured historical uniforms worn by a nineteenth-century rifleman."
New Zealand A very small, insectivorous wren-like bird (Acanthisitta chloris) of the family Acanthisittidae, native to the forests of New Zealand and characterized by a short tail, upturned bill, and yellowish-green or brown plumage.
"While hiking through the native beech forest on the South Island, we spotted a tiny rifleman foraging for insects along a mossy tree trunk."
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in the mid-18th century as a compound of 'rifle' and 'man', originally referring to specialized light infantry soldiers equipped with rifled muskets rather than smoothbore firearms. The New Zealand bird sense arose in the 19th century because the male's olive-green plumage resembled the uniform of a colonial rifle regiment.