A French infantryman or foot soldier; a common footman or attendant in a household.
From French fantassin meaning 'infantryman,' derived from infanterie meaning 'infantry.' The term traveled into English from French military terminology and is now mainly historical or used when discussing French military history.
The fantassin was the backbone of French armies for centuries, and Napoleonic fantassin units were so renowned for discipline that the term became almost synonymous with the 'common soldier'—the opposite of how English-speakers use 'fantasy.'
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