infant in arms
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
One that cannot yet walk and so has to be carried, but a nation in arras is one in which all the people are prepared for war.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “infant in arms” mean?
One that cannot yet walk and so has to be carried, but a nation in arras is one in which all the people are prepared for war.
Is “infant in arms” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.