corporal

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈkɔː.pɹəl/, /ˈkɔː.pɜ.ɹəl/
• (US) enPR: kôr'pər-əl, kôr'prəl, IPA^(key): /ˈkoɹ.pɚ.əl/, /ˈkoɹ.pɹəl/

• Audio (Canada):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)pɹəl, -ɔː(ɹ)pɜɹəl

Etymology 1

From Middle English corporal, corporall, corporel, corporell, from Old French corporal (French corporel), from Latin corporālis, from Latin corpus (“body”); compare corporeal.

Adjective

corporal (not comparable)

1. (archaic) Having a physical, tangible body; material, corporeal.
   • c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:

     Into the air; and what seem'd corporal melted as breath into the wind.

2. Of or pertaining to the body, especially the human body; bodily.

   corporal punishment

   corporal suffering

3. (zoology) Pertaining to the body (the thorax and abdomen), as distinguished from the head, limbs and wings, etc.
   • 1998, Rüdiger Riehl, Aquarium Atlas, volume 3, page 572:

     The smaller 9 9 have less elongated fins, drabber corporal colors, and more transparent fins.

Synonyms

• bodily
• corporeal

Derived terms

• bicorporal
• corporality
• corporally
• corporalness
• corporal punishment
• corporalship
• extracorporal
• incorporal
• intracorporal
• noncorporal
• tricorporal
• uncorporal

Translations

corporeal — see corporeal

bodily — see bodily

Etymology 2

From French caporal, probably influenced by corporal (above), from the Italian caporale, from capo (“head, leader”) from Latin caput (“head”).

Noun

corporal (plural corporals)

1. (military) A non-commissioned officer army rank with NATO code OR-4. The rank below a sergeant but above a lance corporal and private.
2. A non-commissioned officer rank in the police force, below a sergeant but above a private or patrolman.
3. (mining, historical) A worker in charge of the wagonway, reporting to the deputy.
4. A dragonfly of the genus Ladona.

Synonyms

• bombardier

Derived terms

• corporal's guard
• lance corporal
• letter corporal
• saddler-corporal
• ship's corporal

Translations

military rank

Albanian: tetar (sq) m Armenian: կապրալ (hy) (kapral) Bulgarian: ефрейтор m (efrejtor) Catalan: caporal (ca) m or f Czech: desátník (cs) m, kaprál m Danish: korporal c Dutch: korporaal (nl) Estonian: kapral Finnish: alikersantti (fi) French: caporal (fr) m German: Stabsgefreiter (de) m, Oberstabsgefreiter (de) m, Korporal (de) m Greek: υποδεκανέας (el) c (ypodekanéas) Hungarian: tizedes (hu), szakaszvezető (hu) Indonesian: kopral (id) Italian: caporale (it) m Japanese: 伍長 (ja) (ごちょう, gochō) Korean: 상병 (sangbyeong) Latin: decuriō m Macedonian: десета́р m (desetár), каплар m (kaplar) Maori: kāpara Norman: corpotha m (Jersey) Norwegian: Bokmål: korporal m Nynorsk: korporal m Ottoman Turkish: اون باش (on baş) Persian: سرجوخه (fa) (sarjuxe) Polish: kapral (pl) m Portuguese: cabo (pt) m Russian: капра́л (ru) m (kaprál) Spanish: cabo (es) Tagalog: kabo (tl)

police rank

Hungarian: tizedes (hu)

worker in charge of the wagonway

dragonfly of the genus Ladona

Finnish: hukankorento

Etymology 3

From Middle English corporall, corporalle, from the Latin corporāle, the neuter of corporālis representing the doctrine of transubstantiation in which the Eucharist becomes the body of Christ.

Noun

corporal (plural corporals)

2. (ecclesiastical) The white linen cloth on which the elements of the Eucharist are placed; a communion cloth.
   • 1891, Oscar Wilde, chapter XI, in The Picture of Dorian Gray, London, New York, N.Y., Melbourne, Vic.: Ward Lock & Co., →OCLC:

     He had […] many corporals, chalice-veils, and sudaria

Synonyms

• corporas (obsolete)

Derived terms

• corporal oath

Translations

ecclesiastical: cloth on which the elements of the Eucharist are placed

Catalan: corporal (ca) m Dutch: corporale (nl) Finnish: korporaali (fi), korporaaliliina French: corporal (fr) m Galician: corporal (gl) m German: Korporale (de) n Indonesian: korporal, korporale Japanese: (please verify) 聖体布 (せいたいふ, seitaifu) Polish: korporał m Portuguese: corporal (pt) m Russian: антими́нс (ru) m (antimíns) Spanish: corporal (es) m Tagalog: korporal, kulpuralis (obsolete)

Asturian

Etymology

From Latin corporālis.

Adjective

corporal (epicene, plural corporales)

1. corporal, bodily

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin corporālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [kur.puˈɾal]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [kor.poˈɾal]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [koɾ.poˈɾal]

Adjective

corporal m or f (masculine and feminine plural corporals)

1. corporal

   Synonym: corpori

Related terms

• cos

Noun

corporal m (plural corporals)

1. corporal (linen cloth)

Further reading

• “corporal” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

French

Noun

corporal m (plural corporaux)

1. (religion) corporal

Further reading

• “corporal”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Galician

Etymology

From Latin corporālis.

Adjective

corporal m or f (plural corporais)

1. corporal, bodily

   Synonym: corpóreo

Related terms

• corpo

Noun

corporal m (plural corporais)

1. corporal (linen cloth)

Further reading

• “corporal”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2025

Old French

Adjective

corporal m (oblique and nominative feminine singular corporale)

1. Alternative form of corporel

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin corporālis.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /koʁ.poˈɾaw/ [koh.poˈɾaʊ̯]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /koʁ.poˈɾaw/ [koh.poˈɾaʊ̯]
  • (São Paulo) IPA^(key): /koɾ.poˈɾaw/ [koɾ.poˈɾaʊ̯]
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /koʁ.poˈɾaw/ [koχ.poˈɾaʊ̯]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /koɻ.poˈɾaw/ [koɻ.poˈɾaʊ̯]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /kuɾ.puˈɾal/ [kuɾ.puˈɾaɫ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /kuɾ.puˈɾal/ [kuɾ.puˈɾaɫ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /kuɾ.puˈɾa.li/

Adjective

corporal m or f (plural corporais)

1. corporal, carnal

   Synonym: corpóreo

   • 2004, Walter Altmann, Nossa fé e suas razões, Editora Sinodal, →ISBN, page 164:

     As pessoas que defendem o reencarnacionismo (em nosso meio, conhecido sobretudo pelo espiritismo) resumem seus argumentos nos seguintes pontos: a) Existem várias existências terrestres; nossa vida corporal não é a primeira e, provavelmente, não será a última. Após morrermos, voltaremos noutra existência.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Derived terms

• corporalmente

Related terms

• corpo

Noun

corporal m (plural corporais)

1. corporal

Further reading

• “corporal”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French corporel, from Latin corporalis.

Adjective

corporal m or n (feminine singular corporală, masculine plural corporali, feminine and neuter plural corporale)

1. corporal

Declension

Declension of corporal

		singular				plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine		masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative- accusative	indefinite	corporal		corporală		corporali	corporale
	definite	corporalul		corporala		corporalii	corporalele
genitive- dative	indefinite	corporal		corporale		corporali	corporale
	definite	corporalului		corporalei		corporalilor	corporalelor

Related terms

• corporalitate

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin corporālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /koɾpoˈɾal/ [koɾ.poˈɾal]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: cor‧po‧ral

Adjective

corporal m or f (masculine and feminine plural corporales)

1. (relational) body; corporal

   Synonym: corpóreo

2. bodywide or systemic

   Synonym: corpóreo

Derived terms

• corporalmente
• expresión corporal
• imagen corporal
• índice de masa corporal
• vello corporal

Related terms

• corporalidad

Noun

corporal m (plural corporales)

1. corporal (linen cloth)

Derived terms

• bolsa de corporales

Further reading

• “corporal”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10