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| Date: | 1400-1500 |
| Language: | Old French |
| Origin: | reregarde, from rere 'behind' (from Latin retro-) + garde 'guard' |
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rear‧guard
1
fight a rearguard action
a) to make a determined effort to prevent a change that you think is bad, although it seems too late to stop it : They have been fighting a rearguard action to stop a supermarket being built on the land.
They have been fighting a rearguard action to stop a supermarket being built on the land.b) PM if an army fights a rearguard action, it defends itself at the back against an enemy that is chasing it
2 [singular] the group of soldiers who defend the back of an army against an enemy that is chasing it
