Troop/troops vs soldier

Something that has been irritating me since we engaged Afghanistan and Iraq is the term "troops". Weekly, if not daily, the news reports "X-amount of troops were killed in Iraq". Even today on the Associated Press' website there was the headline "11 U.S. troops killed in Thursday attacks". Is that saying "11 groups of soldiers?" See my confusion? It's the term "troop" that bothers me. I am not much of a wordsmith, but seeing the Merriam-Webster definition (below) of troop vs soldier makes me think that "they" (the press) are misusing the word. It drives me nuts!


troop Pronunciation: 'trüpFunction: nounEtymology: Middle French trope, troupe company, herd, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English thorp, throp village -- more at THORP1 a : a group of soldiers b : a cavalry unit corresponding to an infantry company c plural : ARMED FORCES, SOLDIERS2 : a collection of people or things : CREW 23 : a flock of mammals or birds4 : the basic organizational unit of Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts under an adult leader

vs

sol·dier Pronunciation: 'sOl-j&rFunction: nounEtymology: Middle English soudier, from Middle French, from soulde pay, from Late Latin solidus solidus1 a : one engaged in military service and especially in the army b : an enlisted man or woman c : a skilled warrior2 : a militant leader, follower, or worker3 a : one of a caste of wingless sterile termites usually differing from workers in larger size and head and long jaws b : one of a type of worker ants distinguished by exceptionally large head and jaws