Etymology

rearguard

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Today it means: The rearmost part of a force, especially a detachment of troops that protect the rear of a retreating force. Full definition →

Middle English rier garde ← Anglo-Norman reregard, reregarde, rereguarde ← Middle French rieregarde
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The story

  1. Old French · derived fromrereguarde
  2. Middle French · derived fromrieregarde
  3. Anglo-Norman · derived fromreregard, reregarde, rereguarde
  4. Middle English · inherited fromrier garde
  5. English todayrearguard

From Middle English rier garde, from Anglo-Norman reregard, reregarde, rereguarde and Middle French rieregarde, from Old French rereguarde (attested in The Song of Roland, c. 1150), from rere (“after; behind”) + guarde (“guard”). By surface analysis, rear + guard. Piecewise doublet of retrogarde.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.