Dragoon
Definition: historically, a mounted infrantryman; contemporarily, to force or compel behavior
This is sometimes used as a predecessor term to “cavalry,” though in my research, it mostly referred to foot soldiers who were transported to battle on horseback.
The name comes from a common weapon in 17th Century Britain – a musket called the “dragon” – which was carried by these troops.
Today, the 1st Cavalry Regiment of the U.S. Army has the official nickname “The 1st Regiment of Dragoons.”
At some point, the word became a verb meaning “force someone to do something.”
Why I Looked It Up
I had heard the word in a military context, but was curious if there was a specific definition.
The word came up a few times in Rebels Against the Future. Oddly, it was capitalized, which implied it referred to a specific military unit.
Update
Added on
From The Coming Wave:
In 1807, six thousand weavers demonstrated over pay cuts, a protest broken up by saber-wielding dragoons who killed a protester.
Bizarrely, that quote was also discussing the Luddite Revolution.