Lobsterback

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A British soldier during the American Revolutionary War, named after the red coat uniform that resembled a crustacean's shell
2. A term for a British soldier associated with the American Revolutionary War, derived from their distinctive red uniforms that are reminiscent of a lobster's shell
3. Referring to a British military personnel from the Revolutionary era, this name comes from their reddish coats, which evoke images of a crustacean

Etymology: "Lobsterback" is a bahuvrihi compound, a type of word that names a thing by one of its distinguishing features: a person described as having "lobster back" is defined by the red coat, which was thought to resemble a lobster's shell. The word is built from "lobster" and "back," the back here referring to the coat rather than the body beneath it. The red coats were the standard uniform of British soldiers during the Revolutionary era, and the comparison to a lobster's colour made the nickname a natural, if mocking, label from the American side. Because the uniform was so visible on the battlefield, the image of a red-clad back became the shorthand for the soldier himself.

Synonyms: redcoat, British soldier, crown soldier, king's man, military man