Colonel

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˈkɜːnÉ™l/
• US IPA: /ˈkɝnÉ™l/
• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)nÉ™l
• Homophones: kernel

Alternative forms

• coronel obsolete

Origin

First attested 1548, from Middle French coronel, from Old Italian colonnello ("the officer of a small company of soldiers (column) that marched at the head of a regiment"), from compagna colonnella ("little column company"), from Latin columna ("pillar"), originally a collateral form of columen, contraction culmen ("a pillar, top, crown, summit"), o-grade form from a Proto-Indo-European *kÊ·el- ("going around").

Full definition of colonel

Noun

1. A commissioned officer in the army, air force, or marine corps. In U.S. military, it ranks above a lieutenant colonel and below a brigadier general.
• 1908, W. B. M. Ferguson, Zollenstein Chapter 1, The colonel and his sponsor made a queer contrast: Greystone long and stringy, with a face that seemed as if a cold wind was eternally playing on it. … But there was not a more lascivious reprobate and gourmand in all London than this same Greystone.

Usage notes

When used as a title, it is always capitalized.

Example: Colonel John Doe.

The rank corresponds to pay grade O-6. Abbreviations: Col. and COL.

Related terms

• bird colonel