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User:Offrdk5/List of U.S. Army acronyms and expressions

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The U.S. Army produces its own initialisms and acronyms, which often come to have meaning beyond their bare expansions.

Official acronyms and initialisms

  • AAF — Army Airfield
  • AAFES — Army and Air Force Exchange Service
  • AAM — Army Achievement Medal; Air-to-Air Missile (see ATAM); Automated Acquisition Module
  • AAR — After-Action Review (formerly After-Action Report); Air-to-Air Receive; Air-to-Air Refueling; Aircraft Accident Report
  • ABN — Airborne
  • AC — Aircraft Commander; Active Component; Alternating Current; Aircraft; Aircraft Carrier; Air Conditioning; Air Controller; Aircrew; Armament Computer; Associate Contractor
  • ACU — Army Combat Uniform; Assault Craft Unit; Annunciator Control Unit; Automatic Calling Unit; Administrative Control Unit
  • AIT — Advanced Infantry Training; Advanced Individual Training (specialty training post-BCT); Aircraft Interface Tester; Automated Interactive Target; AUTODIN Interface Terminal; Automated Identification Technology
  • ALICE — All-purpose LIghtweight Carrying Equipment
  • AMF — Army Modular Force
  • AN — Army/Navy; see JETDS
  • ANCOC — Advanced Noncommissioned Officer Course
  • AO — Accounts Office; Acquisition Objective; Action Officer; Aircraft Operator; Oiler (underway replenishment); Administration Officer; Air Officer; Area of Operations; Aviation Ordnance Person
  • AOC — Air and Space Operations Center; Air Operations Center; Army Operations Center; Air/Oil Cooler; Approach On Course; Auxiliary Output Chips; Aviation Ordnance Chief; Area of Concentration
  • AOO (AO) — Area of Operations; Aviation Ordnance Officer
  • AOR — Area of Responsibility; Allowance Overrides; Annual Operating Requirement; Area of Operations; Replenishment Oiler (underway replenishment)
  • APC — Armored Personnel Carrier; Acquisition Professional Community; Accelerated Provision Concepts; Account Processing Code; Activity Process Codes; Agency Program Coordinator; Air Project Coordinator; Aerial Port Commander; Assign Pre-programmed Conference (list); Air Program Coordinator; Approach Power Compensator; Approach Power Control; Approach Control; Assistant Project Coordinator
  • APFT — Army Physical Fitness Test
  • ARCAM — Army Reserve Component Achievement Medal
  • ARCOM — Army Commendation Medal
  • ARFORGEN — Army Force Generation
  • ASAP — As Soon As Possible (pronounced AY-sap), but usually meaning, "Do it right now."; Army Streamlined Acquisition Process; Army Substance Abuse Program
  • ASCC — Army Service Component Command
  • ASI — Additional Skill Identifier, such as F7 (Pathfinder) or W5 (Jumpmaster). Used at the end of an MOS code to designate skill-trained personnel. EXAMPLE: 11B4VW5= 11B (Infantryman) 4 (Skill level 4 or SFC/E-7) V (an SQI or Skill Qualification Identifier of V equaling airborne ranger) W5 (Jumpmaster); Airspeed Indicator; Authorized Shipping Instructions; Automated Shore Interface; Assign (and display) Switch Initialization
  • ASOC — Air Support Operations Center
  • AST — Area Support Team
  • ASW — Anti-Submarine Warfare; Average Surface Wind
  • ATAM — Air-To-Air Missile
  • AVF — All-Volunteer Force
  • AWOL — Absent Without Official Leave. Not at one's place of duty, and not authorized to be absent, for more than 24 hours.
  • BAH — Basic Allowance for Housing (formerly BAQ)
  • BAQ — Basic Allowance for Quarters; Basic Aircraft Qualification
  • BCD — Bad Conduct Discharge; Binary-Coded Decimal; Battlefield Coordination Detachment
  • BDU — Battle-Dress Uniform; Bomb Dummy Units
  • BCT — Basic Combat Training (familiarly Basic Training or Basic), Brigade Combat Team (see also HBCT, IBCT, SBCT); Best Conventional Technology
  • BEQ — Bachelor Enlisted Quarters
  • BLUF — Bottom Line Up Front (i.e., get to the point)
  • BNCOC — Basic Noncommissioned Officer Course
  • B/N — Bombardier/Navigator. The observer on a US Air Force fighter-bomber.
  • BOG — Beach Operations Group
  • BOQ — Bachelor Officers' Quarters
  • BRM — Basic Rifle Marksmanship
  • BSB — Base Support Battalion
  • BWT — Battlefield Weather Team
  • BX — Base eXchange. Air Force name for a PX (see below.)
  • CAB — Combat Aviation Brigade; Cabin; Centralized Accounting & Billing (Navy); Contract Adjustment Board; Cost Analysis Brief; Combat Action Badge
  • CAC — Common Access Card; Community Activity Center
  • CAPE — Corrective Action through Physical Exercise
  • CASEVAC — CASualty EVACuation
  • CAV — Cavalry (Armored Cavalry Regiment); Cavalry Fighting Vehicle
  • CBR — Chemical-Biological-Radiological (see NBC); Charger Battery Relay
  • CENTCOM — United States Central Command (AFB MacDill, FL)
  • CIB — Combat Infantryman Badge; Combined Information Bureau; Controlled Image Base
  • CIF — Central Issue Facility
  • CO — Commanding Officer (also conscientious objector); Certifying Officer; Change Order; Contracting Officer
  • COA — Course of Action
  • COB — Close Of Business. The end of the day or duty shift. MEANING: by the end of the duty day. USAGE: "Get that to me by COB today!!!"; Contingency Operating Base. Example: Contingency Operating Base (COB) Speicher, near Tikrit, Iraq
  • CONUS — CONtinental United States
  • CPX — Command Post Exercise
  • CQ — Charge of Quarters. A company-level position of responsibility for units who house troops in their areas. Given to a mid-level or junior NCO who is responsible for the company's barracks and area during off-duty hours when the company commander and/or First Sergeant are not present. Lasts from COB (usually 1700 hours) to First Formation (usually 0600 hours) the next day during the work week. On weekends, the duty hours are adjusted accordingly.
  • CTA — Common Table of Allowances
  • CTC — Combat Training Center
  • CWO — Chief Warrant Officer; Communications Watch Officer
  • CWST — Combat Water Survival Test
  • CWT — Combat Weather Team
  • DA — Department of the Army; Data Adapter aerospace drift; Data Administrator; Direct Action; Directorate for Administration (DIA); Decision Agent; Developing Agency; Design Agent; Development Activity; Disbursing Advisory Notice; Drift Angle
  • DCM — Distinguished Conduct Medal; Data Channel Multi-plexer; Deputy Chief of Mission; Data Communication Module
  • DCU — Data Control Unit; Document Control Unit; Desert Camouflage Uniform (not official)
  • DD — Destroyer (Navy ship); Defense Department (see "Department of Defense")
  • DFAC — Dining Facilities Administration Center (i.e., mess hall or cafeteria)
  • DFAS — Defense Finance and Accounting System
  • DoD (DD) — Department of Defense (Defense Department, see "DD")
  • DPICM — Dual-Purpose Improved Conventional Munitions (i.e., an artillery round)
  • DRU — Direct Reporting Unit
  • DX — Direct Exchange (of damaged equipment)
  • EIB — Expert Infantryman's Badge
  • EOD — Explosive Ordnance Disposal
  • EFP — Explosively-Formed Projectile
  • EMT — Emergency Medical Technician; Emergency Medical Treatment; Elapsed Maintenance Time
  • ETS — Expiration of Term of Service (scheduled date of separation from active duty); Electronic Time Keeping System; Emergency Temporary Standard; Engineering (and) Technical Services (Request); Engineering Time Standards; Estimating Tracking System; Estimated Time of Separation
  • EUCOM — United States European Command (Stuttgart-Vaihingen, Germany)
  • EXSUM — Executive Summary
  • FARP — Forward Arming and Refueling Point/Forward-Arming Replenishment Package
  • FEBA — Forward Edge of Battle Area
  • FLOT — Forward Line of Own Troops
  • FOA — Field Operating Agency
  • FOB — Forward Operating Base; Forward Operations Base
  • FORSCOM — United States Army Forces Command (Ft. McPherson, GA)
  • FOUO — For Official Use Only
  • FTX — Field Training Exercise
  • FUBAR — Fucked up beyond any repair, fucked up beyond all repair, or fucked up beyond all recognition
  • GFOQ — General/Flag Officers' Quarters
  • GMC — General Military Course
  • GCM — Good Conduct Medal; General Court-Martial; Guidance Section
  • HAHO — 'High-Altitude High-Opening parachute technique (type of parachute jump, self-explanatory);also referred to as a Stand-off infiltration technique.
  • HALO — High-Altitude Low-Opening parachute technique (type of parachute jump, self-explanatory); High Altitude Learjet Observatory
  • HBCT — Heavy Brigade Combat Team
  • HE — High-Explosive; Handling Equipment; Housing Expense; Heavy Equipment
  • HEMTT — Heavy Extended-Mobility Tactical Truck
  • HMMWV — High-Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle
  • HQ — Headquarters
  • HVT — High-Value Target
  • IAW — In Accordance With
  • IBCT — Infantry Brigade Combat Team
  • IDP — Imminent Danger Pay
  • IED — Improvised Explosive Device
  • IG — Inspector General
  • IOBC — Infantry Officer Basic Course
  • IRR — Individual Ready Reserve
  • JETDS — Joint Electronics Type Designation System (e.g. AN/PRC-xx)
  • KIA — Killed in Action
  • LBV — Load-Bearing Vest. Used for carrying ammunition, water, and other tactical loads while in the field, or during an assault.
  • LMTV — Light Medium Tactical Vehicle. Used to transport troops or supplies.
  • LZ — Landing Zone
  • MEDCOM — Army MEDical COMmand
  • MEDEVAC — MEDical EVACuation to an aid station or field hospital, usually by air ambulance.
  • MIA — Missing in Action. Missing in a battle situation, not known if alive or dead.
  • MLRS — Multiple-Launch Rocket System
  • METL — Mission Essential Task List
  • MM — Military Medal
  • MOAB — officially, Massive Ordnance Air Blast (slang: Mother Of All Bombs — a dig at Saddam Hussein's characterization of his defeat in the First Gulf War as the "Mother Of All Battles")
  • MOB — short for MOBilization. Also, DEMOB — short for DEMOBilization.
  • MOLLE — MOdular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment
  • MOS — Military Occupational Specialty. Formal job classification, usually expressed as a number or number/letter combination (e.g., 11B Infantryman.)
  • MOPP — Mission-Oriented Protective Postures. Established procedures to deal with the effects of CBR/NBC weapons use. Chemical Protective Suits are called "MOPP suits."
  • MP — Military Police
  • MRE — officially, Meals, Ready to Eat; (slang: Meals Rejected/Refused by Everyone/Ethiopians, Meals Rejected by the Enemy, Meals Refusing to Exit, Meals Regurgitated by Everyone, Materials Resembling Edibles, etc.)
  • NCO — Non-Commissioned Officer. An enlisted person with command responsibility; Corporal to Command Sergeant Major ; see also Specialist.
  • NBC — Nuclear-Biological-Chemical weapons, equipment, environment, and procedures
  • O/A — On or About
  • O/O — Order of Operations
  • OCONUS — Outside CONtinental United States, includes Alaska and Hawaii
  • OCR — Office (Officer) of Co-Responsibility
  • OCS — Officer Candidate School
  • OER — Officer Evaluation Report
  • OLC — Oak-Leaf Cluster (signifying subsequent awards)
  • OPFOR — OPosing FORce/s
  • OPORD — Operations Order
  • OPR — Office (Officer) of Primary Responsibility
  • OPSEC — Operational Security
  • OPTEMPO — Operational Tempo. The pace of an operation or operations; includes all of the activities the unit is conducting; can be a single activity or series of operations.
  • OSD — Office of the Secretary of Defense. Also, SECDEF.
  • OSUT — One-Station Unit Training. Combination of BCT and AIT, where the soldier remains in the same unit for both training portions.
  • PCI — Pre-combat inspection; an inspection of equipment before a mission
  • PCS — Permanent Change of Station. Reassignment to a different duty station.
  • PERSCOM — PERSonnel COMmand, short for United States Army Personnel Command. Now known as HRC, or the Human Resources Command.
  • PERSTEMPO — Personnel Tempo. Refers to the unit workload level and number of deployed days per year.
  • PIR — Parachute Infantry Regiment
  • PLDC — Primary Leadership Development Course
  • PLF — Parachute Landing Fall
  • PMCS — Preventive Maintenance Checks and Services
  • POC — Point Of Contact
  • POG — Psychological Operations Group
  • POM — Program Objective Memorandum
  • POV — Privately-Owned Vehicle. A soldier's personal automobile.
  • POW — Prisoner of War
  • PW — Prisoner of War
  • PT — Physical Training. Used in the plural (PTs), it refers to the PT Uniform.
  • PX — Post eXchange. A multi-purpose store which usually includes a barber shop and a convenience store.
  • QRF — Quick Reaction Force
  • RADC — Regional Air Defense Commander
  • RFI — Rapid Fielding Initiative, Request For Information, Ready For Issue
  • RIO — Radar Intercept Officer, or "Rio". An observer on a US Naval Aviation two-seater fighter.
  • RPG — Rocket-Propelled Grenade
  • ROE — Rules of Engagement
  • ROTC — Reserve Officer Training Corps, often pronounced ("ROT-see")
  • SATCOM — Satellite Communications
  • SBCT — Stryker Brigade Combat Team
  • SBF — Support by Fire
  • SDO — Staff Duty Officer. Same duty as CQ (see above) but done by a Senior NCO at Battalion-level or above.
  • SF — Special Forces
  • SFODA — Special Forces Operational Detachment (Alpha), Also known as an ODA.
  • SFQC — Special Forces Qualification Course
  • SITREP — SITuational REPort
  • SME — Subject Matter Expert
  • SOCOM — Special Operations COMmand. This is the military organization that oversees the activities of such elite units as the US Navy SEALs and US Army Delta Force, among others.
  • SOP — Standing Operating Procedure, Standard Operating Procedure
  • SOL — Solenoid
  • SPTT — Security Policy Translation Table
  • SRS — Strategic Readiness System. An integrated strategic management and measurement system that was developed by the Army G-3 at the direction of the Chief of Staff of the Army (CSA).
  • SSC — Supply Service Center. Located in all major DoD buildings, SSCs provide a full range of common use, expendable supplies and forms, as well as reproduction services. Expendable supply items normally not stocked will be procured on special order if requested. Special supply items urgently needed may be procured on short notice if circumstances justify.
  • STRAC — STRategic Army Corps; STRAC units were those designated to be on high alert to move anywhere in 72 hours or less; as slang, means tight, together, by the book; when said with sarcasm by a combat unit about a REMF unit it refers to stupid troops running around in circles.
  • STX — Situational Training Exercise
  • TACSOP — TACtical Standard Operation Procedure. The “game-plan” that units follow when conducting tactical operations. Similar to sports team and “secret” plays, most units have a pre-determined default method for initiating attacks and solutions to problems that could arise.
  • TC — Tank Commander
  • TDY — Temporary Duty/Temporary Divorce for a Year
  • TF — Task Force
  • TOA — Transfer of Authority
  • TOC — Tactical Operations Center
  • TRADOC — US Army TRAining and DOCtrine Command
  • UA — Unit of Action
  • USAREUR — US Army Europe (HQ: Heidelberg)
  • UXO — UneXploded Ordnance
  • XO — Executive Officer. Officer second-in-command to the CO.
  • V/R — Very Respectfully. The standard closure line on official mail/e-mail.
  • VBIED — Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device
  • VDM- Visually-Distinguishing Mark
  • WILCO — Will Comply
  • WO — Warning Order
  • WP — White Phosphorus
  • WSO — Weapon Systems Officer, or "Wizzo". The observer, navigator or individual in control of weapon systems in a two-seater fighter.
  • ZI — Zone of Interior, World War II official term for the United States. The term CONUS replaced it.

Slang initialisms and acronyms

  • AWR — (Alpha Whiskey Romeo) Allah's Waiting Room. When engaged, insurgents have a tendency to flee to the same building (the AWR), at which point the troops radio in an air strike.
  • ATFU — Ate the Fuck Up. When someone/thing is not up to the Army standard.
  • BCD — Birth Control Device. Refers to the standard issue eyeglasses, generally not known for being exceptionally stylish.
  • BCGs — Birth Control Glasses; see BCD
  • BOB — the sun. Stands for Big Orange Ball.
  • BOG — Boots On the Ground. Number of soldiers available.
  • BOHICA — Bend over, here it comes again
  • BTDT — Been There, Done That
  • BTDTBTTS — Been There, Done That, Bought The T-Shirt
  • CDAT — Computerized Dumb-Ass Tanker (in the era of modern weaponry)
  • CF — (Charlie Foxtrot) Cluster Fuck
  • DH — Darling Husband (used almost exclusively by dependent spouse types)
  • DAT — Dumb-Ass Tanker (in the pre-computer era)
  • DILLIGAFF — Do I Look Like I Give A Flying Fuck?
  • FIIGMO — Fuck It, I've Got My Orders (aka "Short-timer's Disease")
  • FISHDO — Fuck It, Shit Happens, Drive On (military equivalent of "par for the course.")
  • FNG — Fucking New Guy. Soldier coming to a unit straight from AIT.
  • FODA — Fuck Off and Die Asshole. Note: Foda is also Portuguese for fuck. When said by itself, it can have the same connotation as "Fuck off and die, asshole." This would make it a recursive slang in two languages.
  • FTA — Fuck The Army ....or Fun Travel Adventure or Follow The Airborne
  • FUBAR — Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition/Repair
  • FUBIS — Fuck You, Buddy, I'm Shipping. Used toward the end of a tour of duty to indicate an attitude of general apathy and contempt. (see also FIIGMO)
  • FUGAZI — Fucked-up, Got Ambushed, Zipped-In
  • GI — Government Issue; originally used for government supplied equipment, often used by soldiers to refer to themselves.
  • InI — Intoxication and Intercourse (also I&I). Used to specify activity during leave/time-off; see RnR.
  • JAFO — Just Another Fucking Observer. Aviation slang for the co-pilot or observer on an aircraft.
  • JANFU — Joint Army-Navy Fuck-up.
  • KMAG YO-YO — Kiss My Ass, Guys, You're On Your Own
  • KP — Kitchen Patrol. Periodic one-day duty assignment for lower-grade soldiers to do mess hall work, ranging from helping to prepare food to cleaning out the grease traps.
  • LPCs — Leather Personnel Carriers, or combat boots. Generally used when describing a mode of travel (i.e., "We'll be taking our LPCs over to the range.")
  • MARINE — Muscles Are Required, Intelligence Not Essential
  • MARINE — Math and Reading Is Not Essential
  • MARINE — My Ass Rides In Navy Equipment
  • NAVY — Never Again Volunteer Yourself
  • NCO — No Civilian Opportunities. This is a jab at non-commissioned officers who are said to stay in the Army because they couldn't get another job, not because they want to be soldiers or are good at their job.
  • NDG — No Damn Good
  • NFG — No Fucking Good aka, busted, non functional, broken. also "new fucking guy"
  • NPGs — No Pussy Getters; see BCD
  • POG — 1) People Other than Grunts (US Army Infantry) or 2) Permanently On the Ground (US Air Force, US Naval Aviation and US Army Aviation).
  • PCP — "Pork Chop Platoon" Physical Conditioning Platoon
  • REMF — Rear-Echelon Mother Fucker. A term of derision used by front-line soldiers to describe those in cushy jobs in the rear.
  • RHIP — Rank Hath Its Privileges
  • RLO — Regular Line Officer
  • ROAD — Retired On Active Duty (i.e., "ROAD warrior")
  • RnR — Rest and Relaxation (also R&R). Used to specify activity during leave/time-off; as in, "I need a little RnR."
  • SNAFU — Situation Normal: All Fucked Up
  • SOS — Same Old Shit; Shit On a Shingle. Creamed chipped beef on toast/biscuit, a breakfast staple.
  • SSDD — Same Shit, Different Day
  • SSND — Same Shit, New Day
  • SST — Slang for the vehicle used to remove human waste from the Port-A-Johns meaning "Shit-Sucking Truck."
  • SWAG — Scientific Wild-Ass Guess. A close approximation.
  • TAMFR — This Ain't My First Rodeo. Often used by newly promoted captains.
  • TARFU — Things Are Really Fucked Up. A situation worse than SNAFU, but not quite FUBAR.
  • TWAT — Tanker Without A Tank. Used for tankers who are performing infantry duties. Mainly used by Infantry in Iraq.
  • US ARMY — Uncle Sam Ain't Released Me Yet
  • US ARMY — Uncle Sam Ass Raped Me Yesterday
  • USMC — Uncle Sam's Misguided Children
  • USMC — U Suckers Missed Christmas
  • USMC — U Signed the Mother-fuckin' Contract
  • USMC — University of Science and Mystical Culture
  • USMC — U Suck My Cock
  • WOJG — Warrant Officer, Junior Grade. Informal reference to lowest grade of Warrant Officer (WO1). Also called "spot" or "crouton" because of the insignia of grade (a single black square on a silver bar.)
  • WOPA — Warrant Officer Protection Agency. An informal tongue-in-cheek reference to the fraternal tendencies of the Warrant Officer Corps.
  • YMRASU — Yes, My Retarded Ass Signed Up (US Army backwards)

Non-acronym, non-initialism slang and expressions

Rank

  • Bird Colonel — a full Colonel, from the eagle insignia of grade, to distinguish from the one-grade-lower Lieutenant Colonel, whose insignia is a silver leaf; also known as a "Full-Bird" Colonel, or simply, a "Full Bull"
  • Black Diamond — a first sergeant, for the black diamond between the chevrons and rockers of subdued rank
  • Black Hat — Airborne Instructor
  • Brass, Brass Hats — Colonels and Generals
  • Butter Bar — a Second Lieutenant, as well as their rank insignia; from the appearance of the yellow rectangle of the rank
  • Buck Sergeant — Sergeant (E-5)
  • Cherry — New recruit or private; see E-fuzzy.
  • Chicken in a Frypan — a Specialist (E-4) rank insignia, which has an eagle inside a shield
  • Chief — the unofficial form of address for any Warrant Officer (CW-2 to CW-5)
  • Company-grade (officer) — the ranks of Second Lieutenant, First Lieutenant, and Captain
  • Command Sergeant Major — E-9, most senior enlisted rank. Senior enlisted in all units from battalion up. Acts as the senior enlisted advisor to the unit commander (LTC, COL, BG, MG, LTG)
  • Command Specialist Major — Corporals (Specialist and Corporal are both E-4s, but Corporals are NCOs, and Specialists are just enlisted.)
  • CWO — Chief Warrant Officer grade 3 and 4
  • E-Fuzzy — With the introduction of the ACU, used to describe an E-1 Private. There is no rank insignia for an E-1, and as the ACU's rank patch is velcro and goes on the chest, E-1s have the fuzzy velcro exposed.
  • Enlisted Personnel (man or woman) — generic term for anyone who is not a Warrant Officer or commissioned officer
  • Field-grade (officer) — the ranks of Major, Lieutenant Colonel, and Colonel
  • First Lieutenant, Second Award — a Captain, so named because the insignia of grade consists of two parallel silver bars
  • First Daddy — First Sergeant
  • First Shirt — First Sergeant
  • Full-Bird Colonel — see Bird Colonel, above
  • Full-Bird Private — Specialist, from the eagle on the Specialist's insignia patch; similar to Full-Bird Colonel, see above
  • Full Bull — see Bird Colonel, above
  • Grade — pay-grade of a soldier, currently E-1 — E-9 for enlisted soldiers, W-1 — W-5 for Warrant Officers, O-1 — O-10 for Officers; each grade may translate to several ranks; i.e., Grade E-4 may be a Corporal (command position) or Specialist (Spec-4) (non-command)
  • Hard Stripes — used to describe Corporal (CPL) stripes
  • Light Colonel — Lieutenant Colonel; contrast with Bird Colonel, above
  • Mosquito Wings — E-2 rank insignia (one chevron, looks like a ^)
  • Platoon Daddy — refers to the Platoon Sergeant, who is the lead NCO in a platoon
  • Private Major — Private or Specialist who tries to act with authority they do not have
  • Private Velcro — E-1 rank initially had no Velcro tab for the ACU uniform to cover the exposed loops, soldiers at Fort Leonard Wood referred to themselves by this name; i.e., "PFC? No, I'm a Private Velcro".
  • Rank — named title of soldier with a particular grade and responsibility, such as Private, Specialist, Staff Sergeant, Captain, etc; see also grade, above
  • Recruit — new soldier in training, esp. basic training; once the description of the lowest rank, which is now simply Private
  • Sergeant Major — the First Sergeant's wife or an E-9 staff position (see Command Sergeant Major)
  • Slick Sleeve — Soldier with no combat patch.
  • Sham Shield — Specialist rank insignia, derived from Specialists typically receiving less work than other lower enlisted, as well as the shield-like shape of the rank insignia
  • Short Colonel — older reference to a Lieutenant Colonel, esp. when casually discussing Unit Organization
  • Smaj — Sergeant Major
  • Smoke — Platoon Sergeant (Artillery)
  • Spec 4-ever — soldiers of the rank of Specialist (E4) referring to the extended length of time at this rank prior to promotion to Sergeant; i.e., "I'm going to be a Spec 4-ever."
  • Spec 4 Mafia — group of Specialists who use unorthodox methods to help NCOs improve soldiers that are deficient in their duties
  • Top — A First Sergeant (E-8), who is the top ranking NCO in a company size unit.
  • Top Kick — First Sergeant
  • Train Tracks — Captain's rank insignia (it looks like two pieces of railroad track)
  • Wobbly One — Warrant Officer First-grade, WO1

Equipment

  • Battle-Rattle — combat gear
  • BCGs — Birth Control Glasses — The 50's style black or brown horn-rimmed glasses that were formerly standard issue, currently still standard issue in basic training. Named for their ability to make anyone sexually unattractive.
  • Brown Round — Drill Sergeant's hat
  • Brain Bucket — Kevlar Helmet. See Kevlar
  • Bunk — bunk bed
  • Catch Me Fuck Me Glasses — Sleek-looking durable military glasses available through military specialty stores. The name comes from the Army term "high speed" for a good soldier; i.e. the soldier is so high speed you have to catch him to fuck him. Also known as "fuck me go faster" glasses.
  • Chocolate Chips the 5-color variety of desert color BDU's
  • Chrome Dome — Chrome plated parade helmet.
  • Civvies — civilian clothing
  • Class-A Uniform — the dress uniform (jacket and tie) sometimes worn in office-type work, always when wearing a uniform on leave
  • Class-As — class-A dress uniform
  • Cracker Box — an ambulance mounted on a pick-up truck frame
  • Cunt Cap — a garrison cap, due to its shape
  • Dash-Ten — an operator's manual for any piece of military equipment, vehicle or aircraft; all operator's manuals' reference numbers end in "-10."
  • Deuce — common utility truck (2-1/2 ton truck; from "deuce-and-a-half"); same as "six-by"
  • Digitals — the new ACU and MARPAT digital camouflage uniforms, which consists of a pattern of pixelated squares
  • Dome of Obedience — slang for a Kevlar helmet
  • Donkey Dick — slang for the flexible metal hose that fits in the 5 gallon metal fuel cans.
  • Farmer Armor — see Hillbilly Armor
  • Fart Sack — a sleeping bag
  • Fast-Mover — a jet aircraft, especially one equipped to make bombing and/or strafing runs
  • Fatigue Jacket — the shirt of the fatigue uniform; the outer jacket is called a "field jacket"
  • Fatigues — an archaic term for the work/combat uniform
  • 5-Ton — Refers to any tactical truck with a cargo capacity of 5 tons.
  • Flak Jacket — a vest first introduced in WWII for bomber crews, designed to protect the torso against shrapnel
  • Full Battle-Rattle — the complete set of combat gear
  • Gay Pride Ribbon — The rainbow colored Army Service Ribbon awarded to everyone who graduates basic training. Also known as the "Thank you for stopping my basic training" Ribbon.
  • Gore-Tex — the camouflaged, hooded outer jacket which has largely replaced the traditional field jacket, so named because of the material used in construction
  • Hillbilly Armor — improvised vehicle armor
  • John Wayne Bar — chocolate and toffee candy bar found in C-Rations/MREs
  • John Wayne Key — A small handheld manual field can opener. Commonly referred to as a "P-38". jdm.
  • John Wayne Toilet Paper — standard issue toilet paper found in latrines and heads on every U.S. military base around the world. Comes from the filked advertisement, "John Wayne Toilet Paper. It's rough. It's tough. And it won't take *shit* off nobody".
  • Jump Boots — combat boots with a capped toe and a flat sole developed for Airborne troops in WWII. Jump boots are generally worn in one of two situations: 1) by Airborne personnel in lieu of "low quarters" with the Class-A/dress uniform; or 2) by "legs" (see below) with their everyday utility uniforms. Most present-day paratroopers prefer jungle boots or standard infantry boots for everyday wear, especially for parachute operations.
  • K-Pot — the ground troops' ballistic helmet; a contraction of "Kevlar" and "pot," the material it is constructed from and an archaic term for helmet, respectively
  • Kevlar — see K-Pot, above
  • Ma Deuce — the Browning .50 caliber machine gun; from the weapon's M2 designation
  • Mickey Mouse Boots — 1) a WWII Army term for the early issue lined combat boots; 2)inflatable black or white rubber boots used for very extreme cold weather, mostly in Fort Drum, Fort Carson, in Germany, and in Korea
  • MRE Bomb — Using the chemical heating pouches from a field ration MRE (Meal Ready to Eat) by inserting them into a bottle, adding water and/or glowstick fluid and closing the cap. The bottle eventually expands and explodes. Can be left inside porta-john tanks and a number of other locations as a prank.
  • Ninja Suit — Black insulating underwear issued when deploying to OIF/OEF that consists of long sleeve shirt and pants.
  • Pig — an M-60 machine gun
  • Pisser, Piss-Tube — urinal
  • Pussy Pad — a foam bed roll, used for sleeping on the ground. Named so since tough soldiers supposedly didn't need it.
  • Rubber Duck — a non-functioning rubber and metal M16 rifle replica, used for training where a functioning weapon is not needed.
  • Salad, Fruit Salad — ribbons and medals, named for the color differences, just like a salad
  • Shitter — toilet
  • Steel Pot — old style steel helmet & plastic liner helmet system that was used from WWII to the 90's before being phased out by the Kevlar helmet.
  • Tanker Boots — combat boots that close with straps and a buckle instead of laces
  • Thought Suppressor — joke term for the kevlar helmet
  • Tool of Democracy — joke name for the M-4 carbine.

Soldiers

  • 11 Body-Bag, 11 Bullet-Catcher, 11 Bang-Bang, 11 Boom-Boom, 11 Bush — terms for MOS 11B, Infantry Rifleman, sometimes used pejoratively by other soldiers.
  • 11 Chump — term for MOS 11C, Mortarmen, refers to the idea that only a chump would carry heavy mortar equipment; usually used by 11B and 19D (Cavalry Scouts)
  • 12 Bang-Bang — slang for MOS 12B, Combat Engineer, who was attached to a unit without heavy or medium equipment (earth movers, trucks or tracks, etc.) & would operate much like a light Infantry unit.
  • 5-Jump Chump — a soldier who graduated from the US Army Airborne School with five qualifying jumps, but who has never subsequently been on active jump status. A majority of the officers who went through the training as ROTC or service academy cadets fall into this category.
  • Barracks Lawyer — someone who claims to know all the regulations and UCMJ by heart and threatens to use them against the chain-of-command regularly; similar to a "jailhouse lawyer" or a "shithouse lawyer"
  • Barracks Rat — someone who stays at the barracks and never goes out
  • BB Stacker – soldiers involved with ordnance
  • Black Hat — Airborne instructor
  • Blue Falcon — someone that screws others over for their own comfort or convenience; a more acceptable way of calling someone a "Buddy Fucker" (see below)
  • Bravo Foxtrot — phonetic spelling used to describe a "Buddy Fucker" (see below) or someone who does things to screw over fellow soldiers. to "Blue Falcon" someone
  • Brokedick — a soldier who is accident-prone and seemingly is always on sick call or has a profile limiting what he/she can do. Also a generic term for anyone on light duty due to illness or injury.
  • Broke, Lame, or Lazy, The — a list of soldiers who, for either age, medical profile, or any other reason, are restricted to light or no duty.
  • Brown Hat — Drill Sergeant
  • Buddy Fucker — someone who does things that either intentionally or unintentionally get other soldiers harmed in some way.
  • CAB Chaser — someone who leaves the FOB only to try to get his combat action badge. As soon as he gets it, he reverts to standard "fobbit" activity, and never again leaves the FOB.
  • Cadidiot — derogatory term for West Point and ROTC cadets; from the combination of the words "cadet" and "idiot"
  • Cannon Cocker — Artillerymen
  • Cannon Fodder — Infantrymen
  • Chair-borne Ranger — 1) a paper-pusher with Jump wings; or 2) a REMF who pretends to be a grunt (see below) or a snake-eater when on leave
  • Commo — The communications officer or soldier.
  • Cookie — Mess Sergeant
  • Crunchie – Term given to infantry by armor soldiers. Tank runs over, they make a crunch sound.
  • Desert Dime – A female soldier that is seen as a ten only because she is Down range (see below) Also See Desert Fox
  • Desert Fox- A female soldier that is considered more attractive now that she is down range (see below). See also Queen for a year "in country, automatically add two points (out of ten) for females"
  • Dick — self-deprecating name used by Infantry troops to refer to themselves
  • Dick-less Tracy a female MP
  • Dirt Dart — USAF term for a paratrooper
  • Doc — a term of respect for medical professionals; generally used for medics, it also applies to actual doctors and (rarely) physician's assistants
  • Drill — Drill Sergeant
  • Fast Tracker — Term used for soldiers who ascend rank/pay grades unusually quick. Can be a negative term used to denote inexperience related to leadership roles of non-commissioned officers.
  • Fobbit — Term used for soldiers that never leave the FOB (Forward Operating Base). The term came into use during the Iraq War. It is used with some condescension. "POG" "FOB Goblin"
  • Friendly Fire — Term commonly used for any soldier, NCO or Officer widely disliked. From the root term Friendly Fire — the act of shooting, injuring and/or killing a fellow soldier on the battlefield. When used toward another, it serves as a warning that "accidents" happen, i.e., better shape up or ship out before we get deployed to battle or you'll find yourself the victim of Friendly Fire... nothing Friendly about it.
  • Geardo — a soldier that spends a large amount of his money on military or paramilitary equipment, regardless of whether or not it is ever put to good use.
  • Go-Fasters — running shoes
  • Green Beret — United States Army Special Forces Soldier. So known because of their distinctive head gear. The "Green Beret" was awarded to the United States Army Special Forces by President John F. Kennedy. A Special Forces soldier must earn the right to wear the "Green Beret" through successful completion of the SFQC (Special Forces Quallification Course).
  • Ground-Pounder — see Grunt, below. Also used self-referentially by Civil Air Patrol ground search teams.
  • Grunt — Infantryman; historically associated with the sound a soldier makes when shouldering his field pack. Alternatively associated with a supposed Vietnam-era acronym for hastily assembled recruits and reinforcements, "Ground Reinforcements UNTrained." Grunts takes immense pride in the nickname. To non-infantrymen, grunts are often referred to as "crunchies," "nugs," or "ground-pounders." The last three are never used self-referentially by grunts.
  • Gun Bunny — Artilleryman
  • Hemorrhoid — derogatory, an army truck driver
  • Joe — 1) Generalized term for any or all soldiers. Can refer to individuals: "I need four joes for KP." or all soldiers in general: "Joe likes to drink beer." 2) In basic training, an incompetent or clueless recruit.
  • Lawn Dart – A pejorative term for cherries in Airborne school, for the obvious results if they screw up their first jump.
  • Lawn Dart of Liberty — any Airborne soldier
  • Leg — derogatory term used in Airborne units meaning a person or a military unit that is not qualified for parachute operations; the "sanctioned" term is NAP (Non-Airborne Personnel)
  • Lifer — career military person
  • Meat Gazer — an appointed urinalysis NCO who observes as the soldier urinates during a drug test, to prevent any foul play with the sample.
  • Mortar Maggot — derogatory, an 11-C infantryman, trained to carry and use mortars.
  • Mud Puppy — military policemen
  • Muzzle Monkeys — pejorative term for Artillerymen; derived from the fact that Artillerymen would sometimes have to hang from the Howitzer barrel as a counterweight so the gun could be turned; usually used by Infantrymen
  • New Boots — Term used when referring to new soldiers fresh from training, denoted by their newly issued, unscuffed boots.
  • Poge, Pogue — pronounced with a long "o"; a derogatory term for a soldier who spends all his time back at camp and never on maneuvers. Alternately, any non-combat arms soldier, and to Infantryman, any one who isn't infantry; see also POG
  • PowerPoint Bitch — Military IT specialists who are forced to make PowerPoint slide shows for officers who believe that IT technicians are also secretaries.
  • PX Ranger – An individual who buys medals and badges he/she did not earn at the post exchange. Wearing unearned awards (or even possessing them) is a serious offense.
  • Queen for a year — a female soldier who is being considered much more attractive due to being at a duty station with fewer civilian females. Especially used by soldiers in South Korea. See also Desert Fox.
  • Ring-Knocker — a West Point graduate, from the large class ring that many wear.
  • Round Brown — a Drill Sergeant, or his/her hat.
  • SLJO — a junior officer that has been relegated to taking care of the multitude of additional duties that abound in the military. Stands for "Shitty Little Jobs Officer".
  • Shadow Clerk — a non-clerk serving unofficially as a company clerk
  • Shammerai/Shammerai Warrior — any soldier particularly adept at dodging work.
  • Shitbird — a completely worthless soldier
  • Short/Short-Timer — soon to be released from service; usually 90 days or less; i.e., a "two-digit midget"
  • Shower Shoes — 1) soldiers who have just come to the forward unit from basic training; 2) flip-flops
  • Sick-call Ranger — any soldier who constantly goes to sickcall.
  • SIGO — Signal Officer.
  • Smokey the Bear – a term for a drill sergeant based on their hat
  • Sparky — radio operator
  • Speaker-monkey — Psychological Operations soldier
  • Spoon or Shit Slinger – cook
  • String-puller — derogatory, an artillery soldier
  • TAC Officer — Training, Advice and Counseling Officer. This is an instructor at the Warrant Officer Candidate Course in Ft. Rucker Al.
  • Treadhead – A tank driver or crewman, usually derogatory
  • Trigger Puller - An infantry or special operations soldier who sees combat often.
  • Trooper(s) — used in lieu of "soldier" when referring to Airborne soldiers or Cavalrymen
  • Turtle-Head — new recruit; still in training
  • Turtle-Shell — a recruit in basic training who has not qualified with their weapon yet. This refers to troops being able to put on the camo cover for their helmets after they qualify and the turtle-shell like appearance of the helmet without the cover.
  • Weekend Warriors — National Guardsmen and Reservists "two weeks a year my ass" often seen in Iraq/Afghanistan
  • Zoomie — pilot, ground support, usually A-10; also, an affectionate/derogative term for Air Force Academy cadets, used by cadets at the other academies

Other terms

  • Alphabets – A term used by drill sergeants and other senior NCOs to refer to an enlisted man with a long or otherwise unpronounceable last name.
  • Anal, cranial loopback — to have ones head up their ass. "rectal Cranial Inversion"
  • Army Brat — the son or daughter of a career soldier
  • Ate Up — something that's messed up or not up to the standard "ate the fuck up"
  • BA-1100-N — a snipe hunt for new soldiers, especially communication soldiers. BA refers to battery types; however, BA-1100-N spells "balloon." Can also be modified to require an "attaching strap"; in this case, a balloon on a string.
  • Beat your face to do push-ups
  • Beer Vouchers — money
  • Bennie — a benefit, a good surprise
  • Big Chicken Dinner — Bad Conduct Discharge
  • Blast — a parachute jump; the first parachute jump after Parachutist (Jump) School; i.e., the sixth parachute jump is a "cherry blast." A person qualified to wear the Master Parachutist Badge is a "Master Blaster." "Hollywood blast" is a parachute jump, usually done simply for pay purposes, without all the encumbering equipment necessary in real or simulated airborne assaults.
  • Blanket Party — the act of beating someone senseless in their bunk after lights out by throwing a blanket over their head so they can not identify the perpetrators.
  • Blood Wings/Blood Pin — originally, to force the pin backing of Airborne wings directly into a soldier's chest. Now, blood-pinning refers to pinning anything into a soldier's chest, as well as the shoulders in the case of rank.
  • Bo-Koo — a lot (from the French word beaucoup)
  • Bolo — to fail a test or qualification
  • Boogie Dark- Expression used in Afghanistan to quantify the complete darkness found at night there. A blackness that seems to swallow light. Used widely in Bagram AFB.
  • Brasso Promotion — the act of a Second Lieutenant shining their "butter bars" so much that they appear to be the silver bars of a First Lieutenant.
  • Bugout — a hasty retreat
  • Chaff-ass- Refers to the chafing that occurs from the inner thighs. Caused by skin rubbing together and becoming irritated and slightly raw. Can advance into Monkey butt (see below)
  • Chicken shit -This term started during the second world war. It is used to either describe the abuse an officer gives his enlisted subordinates or to describe the officer himself. examples "That was really chicken shit what he did." "That LT is chicken shit, through and through".
  • Chow — food, or "breakfast/lunch/dinner," as in, "Is it time for chow yet?"
  • Cluster Fuck (also Clusterfuck, Charlie-Foxtrot) — Apocrypha has it that this term originated from situations where groups of United States Marines were too large or disorganized to be able to successfully defend themselves from enemy fire [1], but in modern meaning it has evolved to mean any set of circumstances in which massive disorganization has the potential to cause serious damage. This term has passed into civilian usage as well, most notably The Daily Show. aka ""Goat Rope" "Rat Screw"
  • Class 1 Download — defecation
  • Class 6 — Refers to the base liquor store. Also refers to female entertainment and companionship.
  • Cock Holster — term used to refer to someone's mouth, as in, "Shut your cock holster."
  • Combat — used in lieu of a soldier's name to get their attention; i.e., "Hey Combat, get over here."
  • Cranial Rectitus, Cranial-Rectii Syndrome — term for soldiers who have their head up their rectum "Rectal Cranial Inversion"
  • DA Form ID-10T — a snipe hunt for new soldiers. New soldiers are told to get a DA Form ID-10T from an NCO. Invariably, the soldier says he/she doesn't know what that is, and is told to just write it down, and show an NCO. The new soldier usually doesn't realize he has written "IDIOT" and proceeds to show it to an NCO and asks where he can find one.
  • Di-Dee/Di-Dee Mao — retreat, run away; originally from Vietnamese forces
  • Dickskinner/Dickbeater — hands
  • Dirty Bird — used to describe soldiers with personal hygiene issues; i.e., soldiers that don't shower after PT, soldiers that don't wash their clothes, soldiers with messy or dirty barracks rooms
  • "Dog and Pony Show" useless perfection of duty or equipment for (usually) bored commanders or press/media
  • Down-range — physically in a combat zone; also used to describe any destination a group of soldiers are headed to. Generally, the term refers to Iraq itself; i.e., moving from a base in Kuwait to Iraq is moving "down-range."
  • Eleven Up, Three Down — Adds up to "eight up," i.e. "ate up," a term for a bad soldier.
  • Fobbit — a soldier who rarely leaves the perimeter of his Forward Operating Base; Portmanteau of "FOB" (see above) and hobbit. "Fob Goblin" "REMF"
  • Fort Living Room — civilian life; usually referred to as a fictitious duty assignment when leaving the service; as in, "My contract runs out in two months, then I'm being transferred to Fort Living Room."
  • Fourth Point-of-Contact — as in, "You guys had better get off of your fourth points-of-contact." A reference to the buttocks, which impact the ground following the feet, calf, and thigh when properly executing a Parachute Landing Fall (see PLF, above); term comes from Airborne units, but is understood by all
  • Front-Leaning Rest — the push-up position
  • Freeballing – not wearing underwear in the field or on a long march to prevent chafing or "monkey butt" (see below).
  • Gaggle or Gagglefuck a group of soldiers standing about in an unorganized fasion. Also, to move as a group in an unorganized way. See also "Clusterfuck."
  • Galloping-Trots, Trots, Quick-Step, The Shits — Army slang throughout the ages for dysentery.
  • Garritroopers — 1) soldiers who enhance or lie about their combat experience; or 2) rear-echelon troops who try to dress and act like combat grunts.
  • ...getting a range named after you — usually used sarcastically to describe someone who tries to be a hero; this is because rifle ranges are often named after soldiers who get killed in combat or Medal of Honor-winners; i.e., "Don't you go trying to get a range named after you."
  • Gold Brick — someone who habitually avoids work details
  • Golden Boys — a commander's favorite subordinates or subordinate unit
  • Good-Ol' Boys — a group of senior soldiers that are on friendly terms with each other and tend to look after each other, whether or not it benefits their unit; can be used derogatively by soldiers that are not on friendly terms with one or more members of the group
  • GI Party — after-hours barracks cleaning detail
  • Grab-ass — a term for general horseplay.
  • Gut Truck — food vendor on wheels, esp. in training areas
  • Gut Bomb — heavy food, like eating a greasy hamburger after a long road march, where a soldier can sense that (s)he'll be sick later from eating it.
  • Grub — slang for food, chow.
  • Hooah — pronounced "Hoo-ah" or "Hua", a common exclamation with seemingly endless uses. See link to separate article.
  • High-Speed — a highly-motivated and skilled soldier; often used sarcastically when a soldier is motivated but doesn't really know what he's doing, as in, "Slow down, High-Speed." Often used in conjunction with "low-drag," essentially meaning the same thing.
  • Hoofing-it — walking road march with full packs.
  • Humping — to march a long distance carrying heavy gear
  • Hurry Up and Wait — describes the hurry to get ready and the early wake up times that lead to sitting around for hours with nothing to do. Many times the waiting is caused by "the word" not coming down from command; see also, The Word
  • Klicks — kilometers; .6214 mile each "just one more click"
  • Jesus Cruisers — flip-flops; see also, Shower Shoes, below
  • Jody — 1) slang term for a civilian; 2) individual who steals a soldier's wife or girlfriend while he is deployed; 3) a cadence which is chanted or sung while on marches or runs in formation
  • John Wayne — 1) the act of improperly wearing a helmet with the chinstrap unfastened; 2) a can opener, especially the old C-Ration P-38 can opener; 3) someone who tries to be a hero; 4) shooting a rifle from the hip; 5)the toilet paper from the MRE because "it's rough, it's tough, and it don't take shit from nobody."
  • Kill Zone — an area that can be fired upon, but commonly used to describe an area that lower enlisted troops are not supposed to be; i.e., on a floor that is highly-waxed and not supposed to be walked on
  • Land of the Big PX — refers to the United States of America; the main motivation/reason foreign-national women marry military men -- the women wait for a PCS to the USA, receive a "green card," then divorce the husband.
  • Leather personnel carrier – slang for a road march or dismounted maneuvers rather than reaching a destination in an armored personnel carrier or truck.
  • Mess — meal
  • Mess Hall — dining facility
  • Mike — Minutes, "See you in a few Mikes"
  • Monkey Butt — raw skin on the butt or inner thighs caused by long runs or road marches
  • Orderly Room — administrative center of the unit; controlled by the Chief Clerk, the First Sergeant/CO's offices are normally close by
  • PEN-15 Report — a snipe hunt for new soldiers. Military reporting forms are alpha-numerically coded; however, PEN-15 spells "penis." As in, "go get the PEN-15 Report from the Sergeant Major."
  • Peter Pilot — the co-pilot on an aircraft
  • PRC-E7 — a snipe hunt for new soldiers. The prefix PRC refers to radios and is pronounced "prick" and E-7 is the paygrade for a Sergeant First Class. The soldier is literally trying to find a surly senior sergeant (and typically finds one). E7 is sometimes replaced by any other appropriate paygrades.
  • Pogey Bait — 1) candy bar; 2) snack food; 3) someone frequently singled out for unwanted attention
  • PowerPoint Ranger — A term usually referring to a staff officer who spends their whole day giving presentations to the boss using MS PowerPoint. "Death by Powerpoint"
  • Pull a Jody — to have sex with another soldier's wife or girlfriend
  • Quarters — 1) military family housing; or 2) doctor's direction to stay home from work; i.e., "He went to sick call and got quarters."
  • Re-up — to re-enlist
  • Real World — return to civilian life; return to USA from overseas
  • Roach Coach — Another name for the Gut Truck
  • Roger — "I understand," used for radio communication, but also used in ordinary conversation
  • Sandbox or Box — training area
  • Sandbagger — someone who lets others do his/her work for him/her; see also shamming, below
  • Shammer — see sandbagger; see also shamming, below
  • Shamming/Sham Out — goofing off, feigning illness, performing a task slowly, so as to have others do most of the work; i.e., "We are going to sham out for awhile."
  • Shitbag — highly pejorative term for a soldier that is not performing as expected.
  • Shit tickets – toilet paper
  • Shit in your own mess kit — A WW2 expression for a soldier that does something to cause his own troubles.
  • Shit on a shingle or SOS – slang for the old Army meal in the field of creamed chipped beef on toast. Although the menu item is rare today, SOS can mean breakfast in general.
  • Side-Straddle Hop — jumping-jacks
  • Single-Digit-Midget — Refers to the soldier that has less than 10 days left at his present duty station. Some times accompanied by "I'm so short …" jokes.
  • Single Man's Paradise — an establishment filled with the wives and girlfriends of deployed soldiers
  • Slicky Boy — a civilian who may be attempting to steal US military equipment to sell on the black market, especially during field training exercises in Korea. also clever deceptive Joes
  • "Snipe Hunt" Airborne Types- for "riser grease" "canopy lights" they do not exist. Other Army snipe hunts include "a box of grid squares" "squelch oil" "a key to an (open) field (not needed)" etc.
  • Soup Sandwich — when something is messed up or not to standard; as in, "This formation looks like a soup sandwich."
  • Spotlight Ranger — soldier who seeks attention and self-promotion, and generally does not support others; a non-team player who enjoys the "spotlight" and puts personal interest ahead of the unit's. This behavior is often observed during competitive training against peers, such as ROTC camps.
  • Square Away to get something organized, cleaned up, functioning or looking strictly to military standards. Also used as an adjective for anything which is in such a form.
  • Stir-fried Shit — when something is very unclean or unorganized
  • Stir the Shit — burning feces in a burnout latrine
  • Sucking Wind — literally, breathing heavily. Usually meant to describe an inabilty to keep up with a difficult physical task.
  • Summer wrinkles — refers to a very wrinkled uniform, one that looks like it was pulled directly from a duffel bag. Some are here and some are there wrinkles.
  • Swass and Swalls- combination of "sweaty ass and sweaty balls,"; as in, "It smells like Swass and Swalls in here."
  • The "B's" — the barracks, or apartment-type rooms for single soldiers
  • The Good News- i.e., "giving or receiving the good news"; the art of beating or getting beaten senseless
  • The Shit — a soldier who is in or has been to combat. Can also mean that someone knows their job well or is the real deal, "he's the shit, he knows his shit." Shit can also be a reference to a soldier's equipment & personal things, "grab your shit & get out of here."
  • The Word — 1) used to describe commands from higher, sometimes in a derogatory way; 2) the official end of the duty day, signifying when soldiers can go home and relax; as in, "I am waiting on the word." See also Hurry Up and Wait
  • "the Three Great Lies" "Check's in the mail" "I love you" "no winds on the drop zone"
  • Time hack — a rough schedule of the day's events, e.g. "before you go back to get that gear, let me figure out what our time hack is"
  • Tube Steak — penis, or (less common) hotdog
  • Turtle-Fuck — to strike someone's Kevlar helmet with yours
  • Un-Ass the AO — to quickly leave the immediate area
  • Un-Fuck — to fix something or someone
  • Wall-to-Wall Counseling — to physically beat a subordinate in order to impress upon them a mistake they have made; thought to have been derived from slamming a soldier into opposite walls, repeatedly. It is currently forbidden by regulation; however anecdotes suggest it is still in practice.
  • Wood-Line Counseling — same as Wall-to-Wall Counseling (see above) with the exception of surroundings, i.e., Wall-to-Wall Counseling while in Garrison, Wood-Line Counseling while out in the Field. To take a soldier to the trees (off site and out of sight) and deliver physical correction.
  • Willie Pete — white phosphorus
  • Wub/Wubbie — a poncho liner, often used as a blanket
  • Yard Bird — originally referred to a chicken; now, a soldier without direction or motivation
  • Zero dark thirty, zero beer thirty — Slang terms for having to wake up very early in the morning and quitting time, respectively.
  • ... and a wake-up — the day you leave an ongoing duty assignment; usually in conjunction with leaving a combat zone or leaving the service. Used as a means of counting down to the transition. For example, if today is Monday and you leave the service on Friday, if someone were to ask when you get out, the answer would be, "Three days and a wake-up." (Tuesday to Thursday, with Friday being the "wake-up.")
  • Roach Wagon The Mobile Field Kitchen Trailer brought on Extensive Field Traning Missions

West Point slang

  • Area Bird — a cadet candidate who is serving punishment by being obliged to walk on the "GO ARMY"
  • Beast — "Old Corps" slang for Cadet Basic Training; a pronunciation of the abbreviation "BCT" as an acronym.
  • Big Brass Rocket — cheer the Supe, Comm, Dean, BTO and Sergeants Major do with the cadets at the cadets' beckoning during sporting events.
  • B.J. — fresh, lacking in respect; "Bold before June." (from the days when Plebe recognition was the day before June graduation)
  • Bogus — uncalled for audacity
  • Boodle — cake, candy, ice cream, etc.
  • Boodler's — the cadet snack store
  • BTO — Brigade Tactical Officer
  • Bust — to revoke the appointment of a cadet commissioned or non-commissioned officer
  • CME — Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering
  • Coastie — any member of the Coast Guard Academy
  • Cold — absolutely without error, as in "a cold max"
  • COM — the Commandant of Cadets
  • Cow — a member of the second class; a junior
  • Corps Whore — a civilian female who has dated several male cadets
  • Crab — (n.) one who attends the Naval Academy; also, SQUID or MIDDIE
  • C-store — Cadet Store
  • D — deficient; below average, as in academics
  • DFL — Department of Foreign Languages
  • DMI — Department of Military Instruction
  • DPE&A — Department of Physical Education and Athletics
  • The Days — required knowledge for Plebes; signifying the duration to the next major event for the upperclass, and "a finite number for the end of eternity" for the Plebes
  • Emerging Leader — cadet who earns high positions of leadership; usually used sarcastically
  • Find — to discharge a cadet candidate for deficiency in studies, conduct, or honor
  • Firstie — a member of the First Class; a senior
  • Fried Egg — insignia of the USMA, worn on the hat or tarbucket
  • Ghost — a Fourth Class cadet who hides in his/her room to avoid the upperclass or to shirk duties; also refers to an upperclass cadet who is rarely seen around a cadet company
  • GI — Government Issue (not to be used when referring to enlisted personnel)
  • Goat — a cadet in the lower sections; a cadet near the bottom of the class
  • Gray Hog — an extremely USMA/USMAPS-oriented cadet
  • Green Girl — comforter
  • Green-Suiter — an Army officer
  • Gross — blundering; disgusting
  • Held Report — explanation of report
  • Hell Cats — musicians who sound reveille and the calls
  • Hotel Night — one night a week when sheets are broken down due to laundry send-out
  • Ikette — a girl who frequents Eisenhower Hall for the sole purpose of picking up a helpless male cadet, impressed only by the "man in uniform" image; see also Corps Whore
  • IRP — a command: "Immediate Response, Please."
  • Juice — electricity, Electrical Engineering
  • Limits — the limit on the reservation to which cadets are restricted
  • Max — a complete success, a maximum; (v.) to make a perfect mark in academic recitation; to do a thing perfectly
  • OAO — One And Only
  • OC — Officer in Charge
  • Old Corps — the way things used to be at USMA, i.e., "When dinosaurs roamed the plain..."; in reality, when the Firsties (see above) were Plebes (see below)...
  • Old Grad — anyone who has graduated from the Academy
  • P — a professor; instructor
  • Plebe — a cadet of the Fourth Class; a freshman
  • Plebe Bible — "Bugle Notes", handbook of the Corps of Cadets
  • PMI — Afternoon (p.m.) Inspection; a state less than AMI
  • Poop — information to be memorized
  • Poop-Deck — the balcony in the USMA Cadet Mess from which orders are published
  • Poopster — more commonly, Prepster; (n.) USMAPS cadet candidate/graduate
  • Pop-off — sound off in a military manner
  • PRO — proficient, above passing in studies of looks
  • Pull out — to barely complete an assignment on time and meeting only the minimum standards; also, SLUG-STOPPER
  • Quill — (2-1) a report for delinquency
  • Rock Squad — Remedial Swimming, an additional class for Plebe non-swimmers; derived from the term ROCK — an individual that struggles in academics and "sinks" to the bottom of the class. "Rock Math" is the lowest section in Plebe Math.
  • Room Con — confinement to quarters, as a punishment for breach of discipline
  • RD=FC — "Rough Draft Equals Final Copy"; the art of completing a paper or project in one sitting
  • SAMI — Saturday Morning Inspection
  • SF — Special Forces
  • Slug — a special punishment for serious offense; also, SLAM — (v.) to impose a special punishment on someone
  • Snake — one who will cut in at hops (see above); (v.) to cut in
  • Solids — Engineering Mechanics
  • SOD — Senior Officer Of the Day
  • SOG — Senior Officer Of the Guard
  • Spec — to memorize verbatim; as in, "to spec blind" (also, SPEC AND DUMP — to memorize material to pass a test, then forget it)
  • Squid — one who attends the Naval Academy
  • Star Man — an academically-distinguished cadet candidate
  • Striper — a cadet captain
  • Supe — the Superintendent
  • TAC — a tactical officer
  • Tar Bucket — parade hat
  • Ted — an intelligent person or one who learns quickly (also, GEEK)
  • TEE — Term End Examination; finals
  • Thayer Angle — the angle a saber makes on a female Firstie's hip while dressed under arms
  • Thayer Week — a week with numerous graded events
  • Tie Up — to make a gross error
  • Tour — one hour's walk on the area (punishment); a period of duty, as a guard tour
  • Trou — trousers; also, a female cadet
  • Turnback — a re-admitted cadet
  • Went-off — special attention from an upperclass cadet
  • Woo-Poo-U — USMA; also, WOOPS
  • Woops — sound Squids (see above) make when they see USMAPS cadet candidates
  • Wopper, WOPR — Written Oral Partial Review
  • WPR — Written Partial Review; i.e., a midterm
  • Writ — a written recitation; an examination
  • Yearling — a member of the Third Class; a sophomore (also, YUK)
  • Zoomie — one who attends the Air Force Academy

Field slang

  • Blue Canoe — a portable (chemical) toilet
  • Bug Dope — A insect repellent
  • Crowd Pleaser — a large bomb dropped from a fighter or bomber
  • ...doesn't take a GED — a phrase used when instructing/training soldiers, implying that it doesn't require a lot of intelligence to understand. GED is the General Educational Development test taken in place of a high-school diploma.
  • Down Range — physically in a combat zone, it is also used to describe an imaginary place all soldiers are headed to but never actually reach. Currently, the term refers to Iraq itself; moving from a base in Kuwait to Iraq is moving "down-range". In training, refers to the transition from reception battalion to the unit of training.
  • Hooch — soldier's dwelling in-country, from hut to barracks (originated in Vietnam).
  • Hajji — any civilian or civilian item, eg., a civilian is a "hajji", a civilian vehicle is a "hajji car", a civilian house is a "hajji house." (Literally, "Hajji" means a Muslim that has gone on the Hajj, but U.S. soldiers use it for Middle-Eastern civilians, in general. taken from the character on Johnny Quest)
  • Mad Minute — a Vietnam-era term for a furious minute of firepower used to discourage infiltrators around a defensive position, to do "reconnaissance by fire" or to clear a landing zone upon arrival. It is also called a "mike-mike" and can mean a furious session of test-firing weapons.
  • In-Country — physically in a combat zone; see also Down Range.
  • Kurd Killers — humanitarian relief pallets dropped from cargo planes. Kurds after Operation Desert Storm would get under the large pallets as they were parachuted down. Some Kurds were crushed.
  • Rock-Eaters — a term used by troops during the Balkan missions to describe locals. It comes from the locals' tooth decay, which was explained by saying that they ate rocks, making their teeth fall out. It can also refer to a character under that very name in the 80s movie The Never Ending Story a giant with teeth that looked very much like badly decayed human teeth (his were made of stone, like the rest of his body).
  • Snake-Eaters — a term used to describe Special Forces personnel, referencing their often austere living conditions with native peoples.
  • Shallow Grave — another name for "Hasty Fighting Position" which is a shallow, dug-in hole in the ground used to temporarily avoid enemy gun fire and establish a defensive line.
  • The Sand Box — Iraq, particularly the southern part; also National Training Center.
  • Slicky Boys — thieves that sneak into bivouac sites, mainly in Korea.
  • Spoon — a cook or someone who serves food as their job.
  • The Shit — combat or a forward area; "I need to go to Iraq and get in the shit."
  • The Suck — A situation that places a soldier in a ridiculous position of misery or in harms way. Used as Jarhead's tagline.
  • The Wire — perimeter of any compound in a combat zone. IE: "If you are going outside the wire, you must do an equipment check"
  • TAMFR-This Aint My First Rodeo:Often Used By Newly Promoted Captains.
  • Three Men in a Boat — Stop. The Arabic letters قف‎ making the word 'stop' appear to be three men sitting in a canoe, with the two dots of the letter qāf and the one of fāʼ being their "heads."
  • When is this weekend going to end? — a complaint by a reservist or national guardsman while on deployment. Alternatively, "this is the longest weekend ever" or "is it at least Sunday yet?"
  • Wrong Answer — a response commonly used to dismiss explanation or excuses. Can also be used to answer one's own question or as a statement, as in, "Talking in the chow hall is the wrong answer."

Nicknames for Army posts and schools

  • Camp Bragg — Nickname for Camp Anaconda (Ballad Iraq) during OIF 3 when the majority of the camps' tennants were deployed from Fort Bragg, NC. Many of the stringent and often times pointless policies and rules followed them to Anaconda creating a Bragg-like atmosphere. "MortarVille" was a much more common name due to the daily mortar shell attacks fired by close-by enemies outside the perimeter fence.
  • Defense Love Institute — Defense Language Institute (DLI)
  • Fort Beginning — Fort Benning — Trainees call it this because of the long wait to begin infantry school. Also called "Fort Bend Me Over."
  • Fort Blister — Fort Bliss, TX. Named this because of the intense heat of the region
  • Fort Cartoon, Port Carson — Fort Carson, CO
  • Fort Drunk — Fort Drum — in the 1990s, due to the high level of alcohol related incidents
  • Fort Hoochy Koochy — Fort Huachuca, AZ
  • Fort Knocks — Fort Knox
  • Fort Leisure — Fort Lee, home of the Quartermaster Corps, where cooks, supply, petroleum, and water specialists are trained. Name comes from proximity to D.C. area, VA Beach, other tourist attractions, also perceived loose standards for trainees.
  • Fort Lost in the Woods, Fort Misery — Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri due to its remote location in rural Missouri.
  • Fort Puke, Fort Poke, Camp Swampy — Fort Polk, due to name or location. The adjacent town of Leesville, LA is often referred to as "Sleazeville" or "Diseaseville".
  • Fort Sham — Fort Sam Houston — see shamming above.
  • Fort Silly — Fort Sill
  • Fort Useless — Fort Eustis Also stands for Even Uncle Sam Thinks It Sucks
  • Fort We-gotcha — Fort Huachuca, due to the long AITs for Military Intelligence MOSes. Adjacent town of Sierra Vista, AZ is often referred to as "Sorry Vista".
  • Fayette-nam — A nick name for Fayetteville, N.C., which is just outside Fort Bragg, N.C.
  • Relaxin' Jackson — Fort Jackson, for easy training standards
  • Mother Rucker — Fort Rucker, Home of the Army's Helicopter Flight School
  • School of Matrimony — School of Music, named as such because many couples get married while at the school so they can be stationed together. Also known as the School of The Perfect Fourth, in reference to the opening musical interval in Wagner's Bridal Chorus.
  • Fort Bragghdad — Fort Bragg, NC. The adjacent city of Fayetteville is frequently referred to as "Fayettenam."
  • Fort Drag — Fort Bragg, NC. Due to the lack of off post women and activities.
  • PROM — Presidio of Monterey, California
  • The Planet — The now closed Fort Ord in Monterey, California.
  • The Jew Gwangju Air Force Base, South Korea
  • Fort Marshmello--Fort Monmouth, New Jersey (CECOM HQ)
  • Fort Fumble---Fort Campbell, KY

Nicknames for units

  • 2nd Ass Crack Regiment — 2nd Cavalry Regiment, refers to the fact that the abbreviation for the units name is 2nd ACR
  • 2nd All-Criminals Regiment — 2nd Cavalry Regiment, refers to the regiment's former name, 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, largely due to the lack of entertainment/diversions in the regiment's former location at Ft. Polk.
  • 10th Mo-Town — 10th Mountain Division.
  • 10th "We Don't Do Mountains" — 10th Mountain Division, from the fact inclusion of 'mountain' in the unit name is for purely historical reasons, much like the 'airborne' in the 101st Airborne Division.
  • The 82d Airplane Gang — 82nd Airborne Division. In reference to the significant gang mentality of many military dependents at Fort Bragg.
  • The Air Raft — 82nd Airborne Division From the stylized "AA" cypher (for "All Americans") on the division patch.
  • Alcoholics Anonymous — 82nd Airborne Division From the stylized "AA" cypher on the division patch.
  • All African — 82nd Airborne Division From the stylized "AA" cypher on the division patch. (WW2, pejorative)
  • Screaming Eagles — 101st, for the Eagle on their shoulders
  • "The Band-Box Troop" — F Troop, 7h Cav (c 1876), for its spit-polish.
  • "The Big Dead One" — 1st Infantry Division, a play on its more common nickname, "The Big Red One".
  • "The Big Red One" — 1st Infantry Division, from the shoulder patch.
  • The Blackhorse — 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. In the early 1900s, the regiment was camped at the Presidio, and the residents of San Francisco nicknamed the regiment due to majority of their horses being black in color.
  • BDO — 1st Infantry Division, from the abbreviation of its nickname, "The Big Dead One".
  • Black Hearts — 2nd Armored Division, for their behavior during WWII.
  • Bloody Bucket — 28th Infantry Division, named so by the Nazis, for their red keystone flash and vicious fighting tactics during the Normandy Campaign.
  • BRO — 1st Infantry Division, from the abbreviation of its nickname, "The Big Red One".
  • Broken TV — 3rd Infantry Division, due to their patch being square and consisting of alternating blue and white diagonal lines, like a TV on the fritz.
  • Choking Chickens, Puking Buzzards, or Screaming Chickens — 101st Airborne Division, from "Screaming Eagles" motto and the open-mouthed eagle on the unit patch
  • Electric Chili Pepper – the 25th Infantry Division, for their patch
  • Electric Strawberry – the 25th Infantry Division, for their taro-leaf shaped patch (that resembles a strawberry) with a lightning bolt in the middle.
  • Exploding Asshole — the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary)
  • First Team — First Cavalry Division.
  • Flaming Asshole — 40th Infantry Division, for the appearance of the sun symbol of their subdued patch.
  • Gaggin' Dragon — The XVIII Airborne Corps, from their unit patch.
  • Great Beret Give-Away — 82nd Airborne Division. Light infantry units typically used this, because previous to the army switching to berets, this was the only division-sized unit that wore berets. Infantrymen thought it insulting to warriors that even administrative clerks in the 82nd wore berets.
  • "Gray Horse" — E Troop, 7h Cav (c 1876), for its preference in color of mount.
  • "Hell on Wheels" — 2nd Armored Division for their bad behavior prior to WWII in Georgia.
  • Ivy Division — 4th Infantry Division whose patch has four ivy leaves. Also described as "four 2LT's pointing north".
  • JJ/Jumping Junkies — late 1960s to 80s term for the 82nd Airborne due to the high amount of drug use within the unit.
  • Leaning Shithouse — 1st Corps Support Command (now 1st Sustainment Command) units, due to the unit patch, an arrow pointing to the 11 o'clock position [2]
  • LIBERATORS — 14th Armored Division
  • Nasty Girls, Nasty Guard, No-Go, Trailer Trash — National Guard soldiers
  • Real Army - Active Duty/Regular Army component soldiers, from the Component abbreviation of RA, and the inference that Reserves and National Guard soldiers aren't "Real Soldiers".
  • Rainbow — 42nd Infantry Division, from their unit patch.
  • Rainbow Coalition (pejorative) — 42nd Infantry Division, mocking on the unit patch.
  • Rock of the Marne — 3rd Infantry Division, nickname earned in the Battle of the Marne, World War I.
  • The Jumping Through Our Asses Division — 82nd Airborne Division
  • T-Patchers — 36th Infantry Division from the "T" on their shoulder patches.
  • The Varsity — 4th Infantry Division
  • The Electric Pussies — 35th Signal Brigade Term to describe Unit Patch, mocking communications affiliation.

References

Private No Rank- an E-1 private, who has yet to earn a rank ensignia

See also

External links

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