rearguard
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++LDOCE 5++rear·guard /ˈrɪəɡɑːd $ ˈrɪrɡɑːrd/ noun 1 fight a rearguard action a) STOP something THAT IS HAPPENINGto make a determined effort to prevent a change that you think is bad, although it seems too late to stop it 竭力阻止，顽强抵抗 They have been fighting a rearguard action to stop a supermarket being built on the land. 为了阻止在这块地上建超级市场，他们一直在做最后的努力。 b) PMif an army fights a rearguard action, it defends itself at the back against an enemy that is chasing it 殿后作战，后卫战斗〔由后卫部队阻击追兵〕2. [singular] the group of soldiers who defend the back of an army against an enemy that is chasing it 后卫部队
Examples from the Corpus
rearguard• With their captain and inspiration, Roy Aitken, suspended, Saints seemed to have come prepared to fight a rearguard action.• Let us try a rearguard action to confine its scope to peripheral cases.• From an Arsenal rearguard action the ball would, seemingly inevitably, reach Alex.• The troops remaining in the islands fought a bitter rearguard action.• The best that propaganda could do was to emphasise the courage of Leonidas and his rearguard.• Oldham's attack had a fruitless afternoon against a Rovers' rearguard in which Kevin Moran was outstanding.• They arrived too late to save Praag but did destroy part of the Chaos army's rearguard.• On machines however, a tough rearguard action was fought by the employers.Origin rearguard (1400-1500) Old French reregarde, from rere “behind” (from Latin retro-) + garde “guard”rear·guard nounChineseSyllable
to prevent Corpus determined a make effort to
rearguard
rear‧guard /ˈrɪəɡɑːd $ ˈrɪrɡɑːrd/
noun
a. to make a determined effort to prevent a change that you think is bad, although it seems too late to stop it:
They have been fighting a rearguard action to stop a supermarket being built on the land.
b. if an army fights a rearguard action, it defends itself at the back against an enemy that is chasing it
2. [singular] the group of soldiers who defend the back of an army against an enemy that is chasing it
rear‧guard /ˈrɪəɡɑːd $ ˈrɪrɡɑːrd/
noun Date: 1400-1500
Language: Old French
Origin: reregarde, from rere __behind__ (from Latin retro-) + garde __guard__
1. fight a rearguard actionLanguage: Old French
Origin: reregarde, from rere __behind__ (from Latin retro-) + garde __guard__
a. to make a determined effort to prevent a change that you think is bad, although it seems too late to stop it:
b. if an army fights a rearguard action, it defends itself at the back against an enemy that is chasing it
2. [singular] the group of soldiers who defend the back of an army against an enemy that is chasing it