Dictionary

sepoy en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /sɪˈpɔɪ/
• /ˈsiːˌpɔɪ/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱewh₁-der.? Proto-Iranian *cwáHdahder. Middle Persian spʿh Classical Persian سپاه (sipāh) Middle Persian 𐭩𐭧 (yḥ /⁠-īh⁠/) Classical Persian ـی (-ē) Classical Persian سِپَاهِی (sipāhī)bor. Urdu سِپَاہِی (sipāhī)bor. Portuguese sipaibor. English sepoy From Portuguese sipai, from Urdu سِپاہی (sipāhī) / Hindi सिपाही (sipāhī), from Classical Persian سِپَاهِی (sipāhī, “soldier, horseman”), from سِپَاه (sipāh, “army”). Doublet of spahi and sipahi.

Meanings

1. (historical) A native soldier of the East Indies, employed in the service of a European colonial power, notably the British India army (first under the British-chartered East India Company, later in the crown colony), but also France and Portugal.
   • If our door were in the hands of the Sepoys the place must fall, and the women and children be treated as they were in Cawnpore. 1890 February, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “The Strange Story of Jonathan Small”, in The Sign of Four (Standard Library), London: Spencer Blackett […], →OCLC, page 238:
   • They proved to be the wives of a body of sepoys, also from the 5th Regiment of Bombay Native Infantry; the sepoys had perished, and their families been enslaved, when their pattamar had been captured by the Qawasim some months before. 1997, Charles E. Davies, The Blood-red Arab Flag: An Investigation Into Qasimi Piracy, 1797-1820, University of Exeter Press, →ISBN, page 312:
2. (India, Nepal, Pakistan) The holder of an infantry enlisted rank equivalent to private in other countries.

Forms

Descendants

sepoy · sepoy · sepoy · sipoy · Sepoy · sepoy

Translations (28)

it sepoy (a native soldier of the East Indies) · be сіпа́й (a native soldier of the East Indies) · fr cipaye (a native soldier of the East Indies) · ur سِپاہی (a native soldier of the East Indies) · ta சிப்பாய் (a native soldier of the East Indies) · ota سپاهی (a native soldier of the East Indies) · ml ശിപായി (a native soldier of the East Indies) · uk сипа́й (a native soldier of the East Indies) · tg сипоҳӣ (a native soldier of the East Indies) · fa-ira سِپاهی (a native soldier of the East Indies) · de Sepoy (a native soldier of the East Indies) · nl sepoy (a native soldier of the East Indies) · pt sipaio (a native soldier of the East Indies) · es cipayo (a native soldier of the East Indies) · nl sipoy (a native soldier of the East Indies) · tr sepoy (a native soldier of the East Indies) · ar سِبَاهِي (a native soldier of the East Indies) · hy սիփահի (a native soldier of the East Indies) · mk сепој (a native soldier of the East Indies) · ca sipai (a native soldier of the East Indies) · hu szipoj (a native soldier of the East Indies) · id sipahi (a native soldier of the East Indies) · fa-cls سِپَاهِی (a native soldier of the East Indies) · hi सिपाही (a native soldier of the East Indies) · ru сипа́й (a native soldier of the East Indies) · bn সিপাহী (a native soldier of the East Indies) · pt cipaio (a native soldier of the East Indies) · te సిపాయి (a native soldier of the East Indies)