bivouac

bivouac
\ \ [18] Bivouac appears to be of Swiss- German origin. The early 19th-century writer Stalder noted that the term beiwacht (bei ‘additional’ + wacht ‘guard’ – a relative of English watch and wake) was used in Aargau and Zürich for a sort of band of vigilantes who assisted the regular town guard. Beiwacht was borrowed into French as bivac, and came to English in a later form bivouac. Its original application in English was to an army remaining on the alert during the night, to guard against surprise attack; in so doing, of course, the soldiers did not go to sleep in their tents, and from this the term bivouac spread to ‘improvised, temporary camp’, without the luxury of regular tents.
\ \ Cf.⇒ WAKE, WATCH

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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Synonyms:
(without encamping)


Look at other dictionaries:

  • bivouac — [ bivwak ] n. m. • bivoie 1650; du suisse all. Biwacht « patrouille supplémentaire de nuit » 1 ♦ Vx Garde de nuit. 2 ♦ Installation provisoire en plein air de troupes en campagne. ⇒ campement, cantonnement. Coucher au bivouac. Feux de bivouac. Le …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Bivouac — sans tente, dans une dépression neigeuse creusée pour accueillir un sac de couchage adapté aux températures hivernales. Un bivouac est un campement rudimentaire permettant de passer la nuit en pleine nature. Dans les pays développés le bivouac… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Bivouac — may refer to: * Bivouac shelter, an encampment * Bivouac sack, or bivy sack or bivy bag, an extremely lightweight alternative to traditional tent systems * A military camp * Bivouac (ants), where a nest is constructed out of the living ant worker …   Wikipedia

  • bivouac — BIVOUAC. s. m. Quelques uns escrivent Bihouac. Garde extraordinaire qu on fait la nuit pour la seureté d un camp. Estre de garde au bivouac. aller au bivouac. coucher au bivouac …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • Bivouac — Biv ouac, n. [F. bivouac, bivac, prab. fr. G. beiwache, or beiwacht; bei by, near + wachen to watch, wache watch, guard. See {By}, and {Watch}.] (Mil.) (a) The watch of a whole army by night, when in danger of surprise or attack. (b) An… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • bivouac — (n.) 1702, from Fr. bivouac (17c.), ultimately from Swiss/Alsatian biwacht night guard, from bei double, additional + wacht guard. Original meaning was an army that stayed up on night watch; sense of outdoor camp is 1853. Not a common word in… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Bivouac — Biv ouac, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Bivouacked} (?); p. pr. & vb. n. {Bivouacking}.] (Mil.) (a) To watch at night or be on guard, as a whole army. (b) To encamp for the night without tents or covering. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Bivouac — Bivouac, s. Biwak …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Bivouac — (frz. Bihwuak), aus dem altdeutschen Beiwacht. Lager der Truppen unter freiem Himmel, seit dem 7jährigen Kriege und noch mehr seit dem Revolutionskriege bei schnellen Bewegungen und besonders kurz vor der Schlacht gewöhnlich. Die früher… …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • bivouac — verb has inflected forms bivouacked, bivouacking …   Modern English usage

  • bivouac — ► NOUN ▪ a temporary camp without tents or cover. ► VERB (bivouacked, bivouacking) ▪ stay in such a camp. ORIGIN French, probably from Swiss German Bîwacht additional guard at night …   English terms dictionary

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