Marches

UK: /ˈmɑːtʃɪz/ US: (mär′chiz)

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

March•es  (mär′chiz), n. 

1. Place Names The, a region in central Italy, bordering the Adriatic. 1,397,892;
   3743 sq. mi. (9695 sq. km). Italian, Le Marche. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

Marches / ˈmɑːtʃɪz/ noun the Marches ⇒

1. the border area between England and Wales or Scotland, both characterized by continual feuding (13th–16th centuries)
2. a region of central Italy. Capital: Ancona. Pop: 1 484 601 (2003 est). Area: 9692 sq km (3780 sq miles)
   Italian name: Le Marche / le ˈmarke/
3. any of various other border regions

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

march¹ /mɑrtʃ/  v. 

1. to walk with regular steps, esp. in step with others:
   [no object] The soldiers marched down the street.
2. to proceed in a deliberate manner:
   [no object] She marched off to bed.
3. to go forward or advance:
   [no object] Time marches on.
4. to take part in an organized march:
   [no object] They marched for civil rights.
5. to cause to march:
   [~ + object] took her arm and marched her out the door.

n. [countable]

6. the act of marching:
   daily marches in the Army.
7. the distance covered in a single period of marching:
   a day's march.
8. advance;
   progress:
   [usually singular] the march of science.
9. Music and Dance a piece of music with a rhythm suited to go with marching.
10. a procession organized as a protest or demonstration:
    a march on Washington.

march•er, n. [countable]

March¹ /mɑrtʃ/   n. [proper noun]

1. the third month of the year, containing 31 days.

Abbr.: Mar.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

march¹  (märch), v.i. 

1. to walk with regular and measured tread, as soldiers on parade;
   advance in step in an organized body.
2. to walk in a stately, deliberate manner.
3. to go forward;
   advance;
   proceed:
   Time marches on.

v.t. 

4. to cause to march.
5. Idioms march on, to march toward, as in protest or in preparation for confrontation or battle:
   The angry mob marched on the Bastille.

n. 

6. the act or course of marching.
7. the distance covered in a single period of marching.
8. advance;
   progress;
   forward movement:
   the march of science.
9. Music and Dance a piece of music with a rhythm suited to accompany marching.
10. Idioms on the march, moving ahead;
    progressing;
    advancing:
    Automation is on the march.
11. Idioms steal a march on, to gain an advantage over, esp. secretly or slyly.

• Frankish *markōn presumably, to mark, pace out (a boundary); see mark¹
• Middle French march(i)er, Old French marchier to tread, move
• late Middle English marchen 1375–1425

march²  (märch), n. 

1. Place Names a tract of land along a border of a country;
   frontier.
2. Place Names marches, the border districts between England and Scotland, or England and Wales.

v.i. 

3. Place Names to touch at the border;
   border.

• Gmc; compare Old English gemearc, Gothic marka boundary; see mark¹
• Anglo-French, Old French
• Middle English marche 1250–1300

March  (märch), n. 

1. the third month of the year, containing 31 days.

Abbr.: Mar.

• Latin, short for Mārtius mēnsis month of Mars (Mārti-, stem of Mārs + -us adjective, adjectival suffix)
• Anglo-French Marche; replacing Old English Martius
• Middle English March(e) bef. 1050

March  (märch for 1–3; märкн for 4), n. 

1. Biographical Francis Andrew, 1825–1911, U.S. philologist and lexicographer.
2. Biographical Fredric (Frederick McIntyre Bickel), 1897–1975, U.S. actor.
Pey•ton Con•way  (pāt′n kon′wā), 1864–1955, U.S. army officer (son of Francis Andrew March).
3. Place Names German name of the Morava. 

March., 

1. Marchioness.

M.Arch., 

1. Education Master of Architecture.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

march / mɑːtʃ/ verb

1. (intransitive) to walk or proceed with stately or regular steps, usually in a procession or military formation
2. (transitive) to make (a person or group) proceed
3. (transitive) to traverse or cover by marching

noun

1. the act or an instance of marching
2. a regular stride
3. a long or exhausting walk
4. advance; progression (of time, etc)
5. a distance or route covered by marching
6. a piece of music, usually in four beats to the bar, having a strongly accented rhythm
7. steal a march on ⇒ to gain an advantage over, esp by a secret or underhand enterprise

Etymology: 16th Century: from Old French marchier to tread, probably of Germanic origin; compare Old English mearcian to mark¹

ˈmarcher noun

march / mɑːtʃ/ noun

1. Also called: marchland a frontier, border, or boundary or the land lying along it, often of disputed ownership

verb

1. (intr; often followed by upon or with) to share a common border (with)

Etymology: 13th Century: from Old French marche, from Germanic; related to mark¹