One word military terms

Military Terms!!! In this article, we learn a glossary of commonly used Military Words in English.

Glossary of Military Terms

List of Military Terms

This is a useful Military Words List you should know.

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• Squadron
• Staff
• Mess hall
• MIA
• Radar
• Specialist
• Squad
• Rank
• Enemy
• Admiral
• Advance
• Cannon
• Cannonball
• Canteen
• Captain
• Aircraft
• Air Force
• Geneva Convention
• Grenade
• Officer
• Ordnance
• Grenade launcher
• Destroyer
• Detonate
• Midshipman
• Soldier
• Spear
• Military
• Division
• Lance corporal
• Leave
• Dog tags
• Gunner
• Star
• Stockade
• Gunnery sergeant
• Reconnoiter
• Recruit
• Helmet
• Honor
• Ally
• Parachute
• Siege
• Sniper
• Paratrooper
• Armored vehicle
• Submarine
• Surrender
• Tactical
• Armory
• Conscription
• Convoy
• Major
• Marines
• Corporal
• Corps
• Arms
• Grunt
• Guerrilla
• Shoot
• Shot
• Gun
• Army
• Arrow
• Mine
• Missile
• Arsenal
• Assault
• Tactics
• Tank
• At Ease
• Peace
• Peace treaty
• Attack
• Hospital
• Service
• Shell
• Injury
• Insignia
• Attention
• Covert
• Defeat
• Taskforce
• Theater
• Defend
• Engage
• Enlist
• Mortar
• Section
• Sergeant
• Munition
• Ensign
• Medal
• Medic
• Tomahawk
• Torpedo
• Marksman
• Defense
• Battalion
• Pentagon
• Petty officer
• Casualty
• Catapult
• Lieutenant
• Lose
• Machete
• Cavalry
• Battle
• Troops
• Truce
• Uniform
• Battlefield
• Salvo
• Seaman
• Neutral
• Plane
• Platoon
• Night-vision goggles
• Weapon
• Win
• Offense
• Battery
• Epaulet
• Evacuate
• Fire
• Wound
• Fireteam
• Battleship
• Post
• POW
• Bayonet
• Warrant officer
• Warrior
• Besiege
• Ribbon
• Rifle
• Salute
• Billet
• Bivouac
• Chaplain
• Coast guard
• War
• Warfare
• Colonel
• Bomb
• Bombard
• Bombardment
• Front
• Fortification
• General
• Bow and arrow
• Prisoner of war
• Private
• Camouflage
• Camp
• Combat
• Command
• Reserves
• Retreat
• Intelligence
• Invade
• PT boat
• Purple Heart
• Quartermaster
• Jet
• Kill
• Fleet
• Flotilla
• Force
• Conflict
• Musket
• National security
• Navy
• Conquest
• Regiment
• Unit
• Veteran
• Volley
• Rescue

Military Terms Examples

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• We should encode the message for security reasons.

Squadron

• The U.S. squadron was based on the carrier.

Radar

• The aircraft is designed to be invisible to radar.

Enemy

• They defeated the enemy in the battle.

Captain

• The team captain vainly tried to rally his troops.

Aircraft

• Two missiles homed in on the enemy’s aircraft carrier.

Soldier

• He wants to be a soldier when he grows up.

Military

• The people are oppressed by the military government.

Reconnoitered

• Small armored task forces had reconnoitered the area.

Shoot

• Keep your distance, or I’ll shoot!

Gun

• The soldier reached for his gun.

Fortification

• Parapet applies to any low fortification, typically a wall atop a rampart.

Coast guard

• Owing to rough weather, the coast guard had been forced to abandon the search.

Prisoner of war

• He died as a prisoner of war in an enemy death camp.

Camouflage

• The men were dressed in camouflage and carrying automatic weapons.

Purple Heart

• The Purple Heart is the most underrated decoration given by the military.

Warrant officer

• He rose from the ranks to become a warrant officer.

Uniform

• I don’t like the color of our school uniform.

Military Words | Infographic

Military Terms – List of Military Words in English

Last Updated on July 29, 2020

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is a list of established military terms which have been in use for at least 50 years. Since technology and doctrine have changed over time, not all of them are in current use, or they may have been superseded by more modern terms. However, they are still in current use in articles about previous military periods. Some of them like camouflet have been adapted to describe modern versions of old techniques.

Administrative[edit]

• Cantonment: a temporary or semi-permanent military quarters; in South Asia, the term cantonment also describes permanent military stations.
• Logistics
• Materiel (also matériel)
• Military supply chain management
• Staging area

Intelligence[edit]

• Signals intelligence (SIGINT) and signals intelligence in modern history
  • Electronic intelligence (ELINT)
    • High-frequency direction finding (nicknamed huff-duff) is the common name for a type of radio direction finding employed especially during the two world wars.
  • Communications intelligence (COMINT)
• Human intelligence (HUMINT)
• Imagery intelligence (IMINT)
• Measurement and signature intelligence (MASINT)
• Open-source intelligence (OSINT)

On land[edit]

• Demilitarized zone (DMZ): Area that is specifically established to be free from military presence or action. Often used to create a buffer between two conflicting states to prevent accidental border skirmishes and established by treaty or a third party peace keeper.
• No man’s land: land that is not occupied or, more specifically, land that is under dispute between countries or areas that will not occupy it because of fear or uncertainty, or for tactical or strategical considerations. No man’s land was what the Allied Expeditionary Force under the command of General Pershing would refer to the land separating the fronts of the two opposing armies, as it was deadly to be there.

Arms and services[edit]

• Artillery includes any engine used for the discharge of large projectiles.
• Artillery battery: an organized group of artillery pieces (previously artillery park).
• Also see below Artillery

Doctrinal[edit]

These terms are used for talking about how armed forces are used.
Many of the terms below can be applied to combat in other environments although most often used in reference to land warfare.

• Ambush: carrying out a surprise attack on an enemy that passes a concealed position.
• Artillery barrage: a line or barrier of exploding artillery shells, created by continuous and co-ordinated fire of a large number of guns.
• Battalia: an army or a subcomponent of an army such as a battalion in battle array (common military parlance in the 17th century).
• Blockade: a ring of naval vessels surrounding a specific port or even an entire nation. The goal is to halt the movement of goods which could help the blockaded nation’s war effort.
• Booby trap
• Breach: a gap in fortified or battle lines.
• Breakout: exploiting a breach in enemy lines so that a large force (division or above) passes through.
• Bridgehead and its varieties known as beachheads and airheads.
• Charge: a large force heads directly to an enemy to engage in close quarters combat, with the hope of breaking the enemy line.
• Chequered retreat, (retraite en échiquier, Fr.) a line or battalion, alternately retreating and facing about in the presence of an enemy, exhibiting a deployment like chequered squares
• Column: a formation of soldiers marching in files in which the files is significantly longer than the width of ranks in the formation.
• Counterattack
• Counter-battery fire
• Coup de grâce: a death blow intended to end the suffering of a wounded soldier; also applied to severely damaged ships (called scuttling when applied to friendly ships).
• Coup de main: a swift pre-emptive strike.
• Debellatio: to end a war by complete destruction of a hostile state. More severe than sacking.
• Decisive victory: an overwhelming victory for one side, often shifting the course of conflict.
• Defilade: a unit or position is «defiladed» if it is protected from direct exposure to enemy fire; see also Hull-down.
• DUSTOFF: a now traditional call sign for US Army Air Ambulance helicopter operations engaging in MEDEVAC.
• Echelon formation: a military formation in which members are arranged diagonally.
• Encirclement: surrounding enemy forces on all sides, isolating them.
• Enfilade: a unit (or position) is «enfiladed» when enemy fire can be directed along the long axis of the unit. For instance, a trench is enfiladed if the enemy can fire down the length of the trench. May also refer to placing a unit in a position to enfilade, or the position so enfiladed.
• Envelope
• Extraction point: the location designated for reassembly of forces and their subsequent transportation out of the battle zone.
• Fabian strategy: avoiding pitched battles in order to wear down the enemy in a war of attrition.
• Fighting withdrawal: pulling back military forces while maintaining contact with the enemy.
• File: a single column of soldiers.
• Flanking maneuver: to attack an enemy or an enemy unit from the side, or to maneuver to do so.
• Forlorn hope: a band of soldiers or other combatants chosen to take the leading part in a military operation, such as an assault on a defended position, where the risk of casualties is high.^[1]
• Frontal assault or frontal attack: an attack toward the front of an enemy force.
• Garrison: a body of troops holding a particular location on a long-term basis.
• Guerrilla tactics: attacking the enemy and the subsequent breaking off of contact and retreating; also referred to as «hit-and-run tactics».
• Hors de combat: a unit out of the fight, surrendered, wounded (when incapacitated), and so on.
• Infantry square, pike square, or schiltron
• Infiltration
• Interdiction: to attack and disrupt enemy supply lines.
• Killing field
• Lodgement: an enclave made by increasing the size of a bridgehead.
• MEDEVAC: the tactical medical evacuation of wounded from the field of battle by air, bringing them to a higher level of medical care and treatment, e.g. from a forward field location or a forward aid station to a combat support hospital, forward surgical team or other treatment facility able to provide significant stabilizing care or definitive treatment to the injured.^[2]
• Melee or Mêlée
• Mess: A place where troops gather for their meals
• Mikes: Minutes. When used in normal vernacular speaker will say will be ready in X-Mikes where X represents number of minutes.
• Mobile columns, or movable columns (French: colomnes mobiles or troupes en activité) — in contrast to stationary troops troupes sédentaire. This may be used as a bureaucratic description to describe the function for which troops are raised for example the regiments of the Highland Fencible Corps were raised for garrison duties while Scottish line regiments in the British Army were raised to fight anywhere;^[3] or it may be an operational description.^[4]
• No quarter given: all enemy troops are to be killed, even those who surrender. Also referred to as «take no prisoners».
• Overwatch: tactical technique in which one unit is positioned in a vantage position to provide perimeter surveillance and immediate fire support for another friendly unit.^[5]
• Patrolling
• Parthian shot
• Phalanx
• Pickets (or picquets): sentries or advance troops specifically tasked with early warning of contact with the enemy. A soldier who has this job is on «picket duty», and may also be referred to as a «lookout.» (see also Vedette, a mounted sentry or outpost)
• Pincer maneuver
• Pitched battle
• Pocket: see «salient».
• Pyrrhic victory: a victory paid for so dearly that it potentially could lead to a later defeat («a battle won, a war lost»).
• Raid
• Rank: a single line of soldiers.
• Reconnaissance
• Retreat: withdrawal of troops from a battlefield (can be either orderly or unorderly; fighting or by rout).
• Rout: disorderly withdrawal of troops from a battlefield following a defeat, either real or perceived.
• Sack: the destruction and looting of a city, usually after an assault.
• Safe-guard: individual soldiers or detachments placed to prevent resources (often farms full of crops and livestock) from being looted or plundered
• Salients: a pocket or «bulge» in a fortified or battle line. The enemy’s line facing a salient is referred to as a «re-entrant».
• Scorched earth: the deliberate destruction of resources in order to deny their use to the enemy.
• Scuttlebutt: For gossip or water fountain.
• Scuttling: the deliberate destruction of a ship to prevent its capture and use by an enemy. Commonly used as a coup de grâce, but has also been a protest (as after the First World War).
• Shield wall: the massed use of interconnected shields to form a wall in battle.
• Shield wall (fortification): the highest and thickest wall of a castle protecting the main assault approach.
• Shoot and scoot: a type of fire-and-movement tactic used by artillery to avoid counter-battery fire.
• Siege: a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by force or attrition, often accompanied by an assault in the later phase.
  • Siege en régle: A siege where a city or fortress is invested but no bombardment or assault takes place. Instead, the besieger attempts to persuade the defenders to surrender through negotiation, inducement, or through privations such as starvation. This may be done because the fortress is too strong for the attackers to capture through bombardment and assault, or because if the fortification when captured is undamaged it immediately becomes a functional strong point for the former besiegers.^[6]
  • Circumvallation: a line of fortifications built by the attackers around the besieged fortification facing towards it.
  • Contravallation: a second line of fortifications behind the circumvallation facing away from the enemy fort to protect the besiegers from attacks by allies of the besieged.
  • Escalade: the act of scaling defensive walls or ramparts with the aid of ladders, a prominent feature of siege warfare in medieval times.
  • Chevaux de frise: sword blades chained together to incapacitate people trying to charge into a breach in the walls.
  • Investment: surrounding an enemy fort (or town) with armed forces to prevent entry or escape.
  • Military mining, undermining of defence positions either fortifications or enemy front line trenches (see also camouflet).
  • Parallel trenches
  • Sapping: digging approach trench towards enemy fortifications within range of the besieged guns.
  • Siege engines: specialised weapons used to overcome fortifications of a besieged fort or town; in modern times, the task has fallen to large artillery pieces.
  • Siege train: specialised siege artillery moved in a column by road or by rail.
  • Siege tower: a wooden tower on wheels constructed to protect assailants and ladders while approaching the defensive walls of a fortification.
• Sortie (also «to sally (forth)»): a sudden attack against a besieging enemy from within a besieged fort or town.
• Surrender at discretion: unconditional surrender instead of surrendering with terms.
• Skirmish
• Switch position: A defensive position oblique to, and connecting, successive defensive positions paralleling the front.^[7]
• thunder run: quick surprise penetration attack deep into enemy territory, designed to confuse and potentially break enemy lines and take a city.
• Vedette, a mounted sentry or outpost, who has the function of bringing information, giving signals or warnings of danger, etc.
• Withdrawal (military): retreat (i.e., pulling back) of troops from a battlefield (can be either orderly or unorderly; fighting or by rout)

Ordnance[edit]

These terms concern identification of means of combat to inflict damage on the opponent.

Edged[edit]

Weapons that inflict damage through cutting or stabbing.

• Bayonet
• Bill (weapon)
• Danish axe
• Halberd
• Hands
• Knife or Dagger
• Lance
• Pole weapon or poleaxe
• Pike (weapon)
• Partisan (weapon)
• Sabre
• Spear
• Sword

Projectile munitions[edit]

Munitions are weapons and ordnance that inflict damage through impact.

Individual[edit]

• Bow (weapon)
• Crossbow
• Sling (weapon) and slingshot (hand catapult)

Firearms

• Carbine
• Machine gun
• Musket
• Pistol
• Revolver
• Rifle
• Shotgun
• Submachine gun

Artillery[edit]

Crew-served, non-vehicle mounted weapons

• Ballista
• Catapult
• Mangonel
• Onager (siege weapon)
• Trebuchet

Guns

• Bombard (weapon)
• Cannon
  • Autocannon
  • Basilisk
  • Bombard
  • Carronade
  • Culverin
  • Demi-cannon
  • Demi-culverin
  • Falconet
  • Hand cannon
  • Minion
  • Saker
• Gun
  • Field gun
  • Naval artillery
• Howitzer
• Mortar (weapon)

Explosives[edit]

Explosive ordnance causes damage through release of chemical energy.

• Artillery shell
• Bangalore torpedo
• Camouflet
• Grenade
  • Hand grenade
  • Rifle grenade (see also Grenade launcher)
  • Rocket propelled grenade
• Land mine
  • Anti-tank mine
  • Anti-personnel mine

Incendiary[edit]

Incendiary ordnance causes damage through release of heat.

• Flamethrower
• Greek fire
• Napalm
• White phosphorus

Vehicles[edit]

• Armored car
• Chariot
• Half-track
• Armored personnel carrier
• Tank
• Tank destroyer

Engineering[edit]

See also List of fortifications

• Abatis: a defensive obstacle consisting of an obstacle formed (in the modern era) of the branches of trees laid in a row.

• Banquette, or fire step
• Barbed wire
• Bartizan: a cylindrical turret or sentry post projecting beyond the parapet of a fort or castle
• Bastion
• Bastion fortress: a star-shaped fortress surrounding a town or city (also known as star fort or Trace italienne).
• Battery: an artillery position, which may be fortified.
• Berm
• Blast wall: a barrier for protection from high explosive blast.
• Blockhouse: a) Medieval and Renaissance — a small artillery tower, b) 18th and 19th centuries — a small colonial wooden fort, c) 20th century — a large concrete defensive structure.
• Breastwork
• Bulwark
• Bunker: a heavily fortified, mainly underground, facility used as a defensive position; also commonly used as command centres for high-level officers.
• Caponier: a defensive firing position either projecting into, or traversing the ditch of a fort.
• Carnot wall: a wall pierced with loopholes, sited above the scarp of a ditch but below the rampart.
• Casemate: a vaulted chamber for protected storage, accommodation or if provided with an embrasure, for artillery
• Castle
  • Medieval fortification
    • Arrow slit (arrow loop, loophole)
    • Barbican
    • Chemin de ronde
    • Concentric castle
    • Drawbridge
    • Gatehouse
    • Keep or donjon
    • Moat
    • Machicolation
    • Murder-hole
    • Portcullis
• Citadel
• Counterscarp: the opposing side of a ditch in front of a fortification, i.e., the side facing it.
• Counterscarp gallery: a firing position built into the counterscarp wall of the ditch.
• Counter mine: anti-siege tunnel dug by a fortification’s defenders below an attacker’s mine with the intent of destroying it before the attackers are able to damage (the foundations of) the fortification’s walls.
• Coupure
• Covertway
• Defensive fighting position; for example, a rifle pit, sangar or fox hole.
• Demi-lune
• Ditch: a dry moat.
• Dragon’s teeth: Triangular obstacles acting as roadblocks for armoured vehicles.
• Dutch Water Line: a series of water-based defensive measures designed to flood large areas in case of attack.
• Earthworks
• Embrasure: an opening in a parapet or casemate, for a gun to fire through.
• Fascine is a bundle of sticks or similar, were used in military defences for revetting (shoring up) trenches or ramparts, especially around artillery batteries, or filling in ditches and trenches during an attack.
• Flèche: an arrow shaped outwork, smaller than a ravelin or a lunette, with 2 faces with a parapet and an open gorge
• Fort
• Fortification
• Fortress
• Gabion: a large basket filled with earth, used to form a temporary parapet for artillery
• Glacis: a bank of earth sloping away from the fort, to protect it from direct artillery fire
• Gorge: opening at the rear of an outwork for access by defending troops from the main defensive position
• Hill fort (New Zealand: Pa (Māori))
• Lunette: an outwork consisting of a salient angle with two flanks and an open gorge.
• Magazine: a protected place within a fort, where ammunition is stored and prepared for use.
• Mining: a siege method used since antiquity against a walled city, fortress or castle, where tunnels are dug to undermine the foundations of the walls; also see counter-mine.
• Outwork: a minor defence, built or established outside the principal fortification limits, detached or semidetached.
• Parapet: a wall at the edge of the rampart to protect the defenders.
• Pillbox: a small concrete guard post.
• Polygonal fort: a later type of fort without bastions.
• Rampart: The main defensive wall of a fortification.
• Ravelin: a triangular fortification in front of bastion as a detached outwork.
• Redan: a V-shaped salient angle toward an expected attack, made from earthworks or other material.
• Redoubt: a fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, which can be constructed of earthworks, stone or brick.
• Reduit: an enclosed defensive emplacement inside a larger fort; provides protection during a persistent attack.
• Sangar: a small temporary fortified position with a breastwork originally of stone, but built of sandbags and similar materials in modern times.
• Sally port
• Sapping
• Scarp: the side of a ditch in front of a fortification facing away from it.
• Sconce: a small protective fortification, such as an earthwork, often placed on a mound as a defensive work for artillery.
• Sea fort: a coastal fort entirely surrounded by the sea, either built on a rock or directly onto the sea bed.
• Slighting: the deliberate destruction of an (abandoned) fortification without opposition from its (former) occupants and/or defenders.
• Sortie
• Star fort: a star-shaped fortress surrounding a town or city (also known as Bastion fortress or Trace italienne).
• Tenaille (archaic Tenalia): an advanced pincer-shaped defensive work in front of the main defences of a fortress.
• Terreplein: the fighting platform on top of a rampart, behind the parapet.
• Tête-de-pont: a temporary defensive work defending a bridge at the end closest to the enemy.
• Trace italienne: a star-shaped fortress surrounding a town or city (also known as Bastion fortress or star fort).
• Trench

Geographic[edit]

• Defile: a geographic term for a narrow pass or gorge between mountains. It has its origins as a military description of a pass through which troops can march only in a narrow column or with a narrow front.
• Debouch:
  • To emerge from a defile or similar into open country;
  • A fortification at the end of a defile;
  • Water that flows out of a defile into a wider place such as a lake.

Naval[edit]

Arms and services[edit]

These terms concern combat arms and supporting services of armed forces used in naval warfare.

Doctrinal[edit]

These terms concern the type of use of naval armed forces.

• Blockade
• Coup de grâce: a final shot intended to finish off a sinking (enemy) ship (which should be distinguished from scuttling).
• Crossing the Tee
• Vanguard—the leading part of an advancing military formation
• Line astern, line ahead, or line of battle
• Raking fire
• Scuttling
• Weather gage

Operational[edit]

• Adrift: Loose and out of control. Typically applied to a ship or vessel that has lost power and is unable to control its movement.^[8]
• Aft: Any part of the ship closer to the stern than you currently are.^[8]
• All Hands: The entire ship’s crew to include all officers and enlisted.^[8]
• Aye, Aye: Response acknowledging and understanding a command.^[8]
• Bow: Front of the ship.^[8]
• Below: Any deck beneath the one you are currently on.^[8]
• Carry on: An order given to continue work or duties.^[8]
• Cast off: To throw off, to let go, to unfurl.^[8]
• Colours: Raising and lowering of the National Ensign, the National flag, and organization flags.^[8]
• Fathom: Unit of measurement generally used for depth from sea level to sea floor.^[8]
• General Quarters: Battle stations.^[8] Generally set when the ship is about to engage in battle or hostile activities.
• Jettison: To throw or dispose of something over the side of the ship.
• Ladder: Also known as a ladder well. Much like civilian stairs, however much steeper.^[8]
• Leave: Vacation time nearly completely free unless an emergency recall occurs.^[8]
• Shore leave or Liberty (US): Permission to leave the ship/base to enjoy non-work activities.^[8]
• Mid-watch: Tends to be the midnight to 0400 watch. Also known as «balls to four» due to military time equivalent 0000-0400.^[8]
• Port Side: Left hand side of the ship.^[8]
• Quarters: Generally the morning assembly of all hands for muster and accountability.^[8]
• Starboard: Right hand side of the ship.^[8]
• Stern: Rear of the ship.^[8]
• Taps: Lights out, time to sleep.^[8]
• Turn to: Start working.^[8]
• Working Aloft: Working above the highest deck, generally performing maintenance on the ship’s mast or antennas.^[8]

Ordnance[edit]

• Sea mine
• Torpedo
• Turret

Vessels[edit]

• Aircraft carrier
• Helicopter carrier
• Escort carrier
• Fleet carrier
• Light carrier
• Fighter catapult ship
• Catapult aircraft merchant ship
• Merchant aircraft carrier
• Aircraft maintenance carrier
• Flagship
• Special service ship
• Troopship
• Ship’s tender
• Attack transport
• Battleship
• Dreadnought
• Pocket battleship
• Seaplane tender
• Sloop
• Battlecruiser
• Cruiser
• Heavy cruiser
• Armored cruiser
• Light cruiser
• Scout cruiser
• Destroyer
• Destroyer escort
• Destroyer flotilla leader
• Destroyer depot ship
• Frigate
• Corvette
• Hovercraft
• Landing Craft Air Cushion
• Landing craft depot ship
• Merchant cruiser
• Submarine
• Submarine tender
• Midget submarine
• Cruiser submarine
• Hunter-killer submarine
• Ballistic missile submarine
• Guided missile submarine
• Submarine chaser
• Submarine aircraft carrier
• Torpedo boat
• Amphibious command ship
• Amphibious assault ship
• Amphibious transport dock
• Dock landing ship
• Expeditionary transfer dock
• Littoral combat ship
• Coastal defence ship
• Barracks ship
• Patrol boat
• Research vessel
• Survey ship
• Dry dock
• Torpedo trials craft
• Guard ship
• Cable layer
• Cable repair ship
• Cargo ship
• Attack cargo ship
• Vehicle cargo ship
• Dry cargo ship
• Replenishment oiler
• Oil tanker
• Maritime prepositioning ship
• Offshore supply ship
• Container ship
• Hospital ship
• Fast combat support ship
• Expeditionary fast transport
• Salvage ship
• Instrumentation ship
• Fleet ocean tug
• Riverine command ship
• Special operations insertion ship
• High-speed transport
• Maritime security cutter
• Medium endurance cutter
• High endurance cutter
• Fast response cutter
• Marine protector
• Landing ship
• Tank landing ship
• Icebreaker
• Heavy icebreaker
• Inland construction tender
• Seagoing buoy tender
• Coastal buoy tender
• Logistic support ship
• Floating battery
• Training ship
• Minelayer
• Mine countermeasures vessel
• Minesweeper
• Gunboat
• Riverine gunboat
• Dock landing ship
• Monitor
• Breastwork monitor
• Riverine monitor
• Technical research ship
• Self defense test ship
• Self-propelled radar station
• Fast sea frame
• Crane ship
• Aviation logistics support ship
• Moored training ship
• Naval trawler

Engineering[edit]

Air[edit]

Arms and services[edit]

These terms concern combat arms and supporting services of armed forces used in air warfare.

Operational[edit]

• Sortie: used by air forces to indicate an aircraft mission count (flew seven sorties) or in the sense of a departure (the aircraft sortied).

Doctrinal[edit]

These terms concern the type of use of aviation armed forces.

Tactics[edit]

• Bombing: specifically area bombing, carpet bombing and pattern bombing.
• Sortie: a mission flown by an aircraft

Ordnance[edit]

• Bomb
• Missile

Aircraft[edit]

• Airship
• Bomber
• Dirigible, balloon
• Fighter
• Fighter bomber
• Spotter plane

Engineering[edit]

See also[edit]

• Glossary of German military terms
• Glossary of military abbreviations
• List of British ordnance terms
• List of equipment used in World War II
• List of military tactics
• List of World War II electronic warfare equipment

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• A Dictionary of Military Architecture: Fortification and Fieldworks from the Iron Age to the Eighteenth Century by Stephen Francis Wyley, drawings by Steven Lowe
• Victorian Forts glossary. A more comprehensive version has been published as A Handbook of Military Terms by David Moore at the same site
• Military Earthworks Terms by the National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior
• Military Terms Dictionary Lookup on military terms offering you clear definitions by some of the most reliable reference works in this field.
• Military acronyms and abbreviations

Each Military Branch has terms/slang words that may not make sense to a civilian or a member of a different branch.

Military terms/slang originates for various reasons and changes throughout time.

Movies and TV shows may depict terminology that was used in World War II, that are no longer referenced anymore.

It can be hard to stay current with military slang, so OMK created a list of terms/slang that are new or established, but still used, found below.

# 0-9

1MC –  The overhead public address system on US Navy ships.

3rd Deck Dive Team- Mainly a Marine Corps term, meaning someone is suicidal and should dive off of the third deck.

11 Bang-Bang- Army infantryman

5 Fingers of Death- Beef franks with beans served in some MRE’s. Named for the number and unpleasant taste

99- Navy term meaning the information being discussed is pertinent to all personnel

100mph Tape- Standard Army green duct tape

 Related Article – What is a Navy Squid? 11 Slang Nicknames For Navy Sailors

A

AAV- Amphibious Assault Vehicle

ACU- Army Combat Uniform

Ali Baba- Iraqi term for bad guy, criminal or insurgent

Alpha Charlie- Verbally reprimanded

Angel- Used in Iraq to refer to a soldier killed in combat

AOR- Area of responsibility

As you were- Return to your previous task or posture

AWOL- Absent Without Official Leave; leaving post without permission

Azimuth Check- Ensuring that you are on the correct path or that the task is being done according to procedure

B

BAH- Basic housing allowance

Bang Bang- Pistol or a Rifle

Barracks Rat- Personnel who stay in the barracks during downtime

Battlefield Airman- Air Force Special Operations Command pararescue, combat control and weather troops

Beans, Bullets and Band-Aids- Reference to supply items such a food, ammunition or medical supplies

Beat Feet- Move quickly

Beat Your Face- Push-ups

BFT- Blue Force Tracker; Equipment that connects with a satellite to provide locations of units as well as maps and routes

Big Voice/Giant Voice- Term used to describe the loudspeaker system on a military base. It will often make a range of announcements, such as alerting soldiers of incoming attacks, the schedule of upcoming ordnance disposal explosions and when and where to take cover as an attack strikes. It also broadcasts Reveille and Retreat when in Garrison.

Bird- Helicopter

Black- When discussing amounts of something, it means you are almost out

Blue Canoe- Portable toilet

BLUF- Bottom line upfront

Blue Falcon- Battle buddy who informs higher command of actions; tattletale

Blue-on-Blue – Refers to an attack in which soldiers are unknowingly fighting against their own side, often ending up with injuries and even death

Blue-on-Green-  Similar to the ‘Blue-on-Blue’, this means your own forces are accidentally engaging forces friendly to your force. 

BOLO- Usually an Army derogatory term for an individual who cannot perform a task or meet basic requirements; also can mean “be on the look out”

Bone- B1 Bomber

Brad- M2 Bradley Armored Personal Carrier (APC)

Bravo Zulu- Good Job

Bubblehead- Personnel in the submarine

Butter Bar- 2nd Lieutenant

C

C-Wire- Razor Wire

CAB- (Army) Combat Action Badge; soldiers who perform in an infantry but do not have an infantry MOS

Cat Hole- Hole in the ground dug by a soldier to use as a bathroom

CC- Coalition Country; coalition of allies

CCP- Casualty Collection Point; closest area to action where personnel are traiged

Charlie Mike- Continue Mission; continue with your task

Chest Candy- Ribbons or Medals wore around the neck

CHU- Small container housing units on large bases

CIB- (Army) Combat Infantryman’s Badge; Award for infantry who is under fire

Clearing barrel- Dirt filled area used to clear weapons at entry points of FOB.

Commo- Communications personnel or equipment

CONUS- Continental United States

COP- Small base in a combat area, combat outpost

CP- Check Point

Crank- (Navy) Temporary galley duty

Crypto- Code that scrambles a radio signal

CSH- Combat Support Hospital

Related Article – Military Banned Supplements List

D

DAP- Deltoid Auxiliary Protection. Shoulder armor

Dash Ten- An army publication; usually a user or technical manual

Dear John- Break up letter sent to a soldier from a significant other

Demilitarized Zone- Area that military forces and equipment are banned from

Dependa- Dependents of a military personnel

Detail- Referring to a usually unappealing task such as cleaning

DFAC- Dining facility

Digies- Digital Camouflage

Double Gates- The task of referring to individuals with names not of their own when around detainees

Drive On- To keep going

Dustoff- Helicopter medical evacuation

Duty Station- Location that a service member is temporarily or permanently conducting work

Dynamited Chicken (Navy)- Chicken Cacciatore or chicken a la king

E

Embed- Term for a reporter who is provided security, shelter and transportation by military personnel so they can observe and report on firsthand operations

ERB- (Army) Enlisted Record Brief; document containing information such as rank, ASVAB details, promotion points, etc.

ETS- Expiration Term of Service; the date a soldier completes their contract

F

Farmer Armor- Improvised armor for a vehicle

Fart Sack- Sleeping Bag, or in some cases a mattress cover.

Fast Mover- Fighter jet

Fat Cakes- Unhealthy dessert or sweets

File 13- Garbage can

First Shirt- First Sergeant

Five-Sided Puzzle Palace- The Pentagon

FOB- Forward operating base; a mid-size base with basic provisions

Fobber or Fobbit- Someone who does not the FOB

Fourth Point of Contact- Butt; term comes from a parachute drop in which the fourth point of contact is the butt.

Front Load- Being the first to complete a task

FST- Forward Surgical Team

G

Galley- Kitchen on a ship

Geardo- Soldier who spends a large amount of money on military gear that is generally not needed

Gedunk- Snack Food that can be purchased, usually used by Navy on a ship

Glass House- An example of a target house for rehearse assaults

Goat Trail- Dirt road

Gofasters- Sneakers

Good Cookie- Good Conduct Medal given to Marine Corps personnel

Green Bean- Coffee shop ran by civilians, common on larger bases

Green-on-Blue- Forces “thought to be” friendly to your force accidentally, or not so accidentally, engaging your forces. 

Groundhog Day- Referring to the movie by the same name, and the feeling that each day is the same during deployment

Grunt- Infantryman

Gum Shoe- Sailor Cryptology Technician

H

Haji- Indigenous Iraqi or person of Arabic decent

Hardball- Paved Road

Hangar Queen- Aircraft used for replacement parts

Hawk- Cold weather

Head- Bathroom on a ship

Helo- Helicopter

Hesco- Dirt filled bins for absorbing explosions

High Speed- An individual who is highly motivated and at or near peak efficacy. Can be used sarcastically. Often includes “Low Drag”

HMMWV- High-Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle

Related Article –Hoorah Vs. Oorah Vs. Hooah Vs. Hooyah: What’s the difference?

I

IDF- Indirect fire

IED- Improvised Explosive Device

Ink Stick- Pen

INTSUM- Intelligence Summary given after events happened

Iron Rations- Rations used in an emergency situation

J

Jawa- Soldiers stationed in a desert area

JDAM- A bomb dropped from a U.S. aircraft

Joe- Soldier

JOP- Joint Operation Planning; Military forces joining for operations

JTF- Joint Task Force

K

Kevlar/Kpot- Helmet

Kinetic- Violent

Kicks- Kilometers

Knees in the Breeze- Airborne term for exiting an aircraft

KP- Kitchen Patrol; kitchen duty

L

Lands- Raised spiral surface in the bore of a weapon

Latrine Queen- (Air Force) Term for a trainee during basic training who is a team lead responsible for bathroom duty.

Left (or Right) Flank- The far left or right edge of troops in relation to the enemy

LES- Leave and Earnings Statement; holds information similar to a civilian pay stub

Lima Charlie- Loud and Clear

M

Mark- Mk-19 40 mm grenade launcher

Meat Wagon- Medical Emergency Vehicle

Midnight Rats- Late night food

Mike- Minutes

Moonbeam- (Marines) Flashlight

MRE- Meal Ready to Eat. A vacuum-sealed meal with a long shelf life

MSR- Main supply route

Mustang- Officer promoted from enlisted ranks

MWR- Morale, Welfare and Recreation; FOB area for recreation

N

Naval Landing Party- Navy personnel for ground-force operations ashore

Net- Radio Network

NGO- Non-government Organization

No-Go- Failure at a training station or job task

Nut to Butt- Standing very close together

O

O Dark Thirty- Early in the morning

Oconus- Overseas; not in the continental U.S.

OCS/OTS- Officer Candidate School; Officer Training School

Officer’s Candy- Scented cake placed in urinals

OPTEMPO- Operation Tempo; the pace at which one is working

OTV- Outer Tactical Vest

P

PCC- Pre-combat check

PCS- Permanent Change of Station

People Tank- (Navy) Inner hull of a submarine

Pill Pusher- (Navy) Hospital Corpsman; or a medic

PLF- Parachute Landing Fall

POG- Person Other than Grunt. Anyone who’s not Infantry. In other words, if you ain’t Infantry you’re a POG

Pogey Bait- Food that the Army does not issue, but tastes good

POO Site- Point of Origin site

Pond Water- The speed at which a slug / laggard is moving

Pop Smoke- To leave

PSD- Personal Security Detail

Q

QRF- Quick Reaction Force; ready to react

Quay- Man-made structure between shore and land

Quick Time- Cadence at 120 steps per minute

R

Rack- Refers to a bed; soldiers ‘rack out’, meaning they go to sleep

Red on Red- Enemy on enemy fire

Release Point- When higher command releases control of a unit to the commander

REMF- Rear Echelon Mother F**ker

Rocks and Shoals- (Navy) Rules and regulations

ROE- Rules of Engagement

Ropeyarn Sunday- (Navy) Half-holiday

ROTC- Reserve Officer Training Corps

Rotorhead- Helicopter pilot

RTO- Radio Telephone Operator or RO-Radio Operator

Ruck- Ruck sack; backpack

Related Article –Reenlistment Codes For Each Military Branch

S

Sandbox- Iraq, Afghanistan or other desert area

Scrambled Eggs- Embellishments on Officer’s caps

Scuttlebutt- (Navy) Rumors or gossip

Sky Blossom- Deployed parachute

Smoked- Physical punishment for some sort of infraction

Snivel Gear- Cold weather gear

Soup Sandwich- Something has gone extremely wrong

Speedball- Refers to a bag dropped from a plane or helicopter for soldiers in the field that contains supplies

Spoon- A cook

Squid or Swabbie- U.S. Navy member

SRB- Selective Reenlistment Bonus; Bonus offered to enlisted members as encouragement to reenlist

T

Taco- (Air Force) Receiving an unsatisfactory grade during training; shape of the letter resembles a taco shape

TAD- Temporary Additional Duty

Take a Knee- Rest

Tango Mike- Thanks much

Target Discrimination- Ability of a surveillance system choosing an individual target when there are multiple options

TCP- Traffic Control Point

TIC- Troops in a contact fight; can relate to a firefight or IED

TOC- Tactical Operations Center

Turtleback- Swimming on your back to watch for direction and a compass

Twidget- Sailor who works on electronic equipment

U

UAV- Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Underground- Individuals who support resistant movement through secret operations

Unit Identification code- Six character code that identifies military active, reserve and guard units

UXO- Unexploded Ordnance; potential to explode

V

VBIED- Vehicle Borne IED; car bomb

Voice in the Sky- Military base broadcast announcements

Voluntold- Assignment that is presented as voluntary but is seen as mandatory

W

Weapons of Mass Destruction- Advanced weapons with the capability of causing mass destruction of casualties

Wingnut-  WINGNUT comes from the shape of the Air Force E2 rank with single stripes, which looks like a wingnut.

Wire- Term referring to the base; a person is inside or outside the wire

Woobie- (Army) Issued poncho liner used as a blanket

X

XO- Executive Officer; just below the Commanding Officer

Z

Zone of Action- Small Section of the total tactical area

Zonk- Released after formation

Zoomie- Anyone who operates a flying vehicle

Related Article –Platoon Size-How the US Army is Organized

References

NPR-Recent Slag

Myfuture Military Jargon

ITS- Military Acronyms, Terminology

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Многие герои наших любимых фильмов и компьютерных игр – участники спецопераций, служащие в рядах иностранных армий. Зачастую, понять англоязычную военную терминологию очень непросто. Затрудняет перевод большое количество значений одного и того же слова, которые зависят от контекста и ситуации.  Хотите пополнить свой словарный запас необычной лексикой? Мечтаете смотреть военные фильмы на английском языке или знакомиться с историей боевых сражений в оригинале? Рекомендуем прочитать эту статью.

Профессиональные военные существовали всегда. Границы каждого государства надёжно охранялись сильными и смелыми мужчинами. Свиты верховных правителей состояли из наиболее доблестных воинов. Давайте вернёмся на несколько веков назад. Как же назывались в старину защитники отечества?

cavalier / рыцарь

crusader / крестоносец

housecarl / хускерл

ninja / ниндзя

samurai  / самурай

viking / викинг

archer / лучник

horse archer / конный лучник

crossbowman  / арбалетчик

arquebusier  / аркебузир

Британская армия

В Великобритании нет всеобщей воинской обязанности (conscriptions). Армия является профессиональной. На службе состоят кадровые военные (professional military).

Вооружённые силы Соединённого Королевства включают в себя несколько структур, среди которых особое внимание уделено медицинским войскам. Их выделяют в качестве отдельного элемента, и это уникально для армий мира. Войска представлены тремя «классическими» видами и называются «службами» (Service branches):

Военно-морская служба (Naval Service) включает:

— Королевские военно-морские силы (Royal Navy)

— Королевская морская пехота (Royal Marines)

Британская армия (British Army)

Королевские Военно-воздушные силы (Royal Air Force)

Руководство Вооружёнными Силами осуществляется Министерством Обороны со штаб-квартирой в Лондоне.

Арсенал тактических средств огневой поддержки пехотинцев – суперсовременные боевые танки (tanks) типа Challenger 2, тяжёлая артиллерия (artillery  / big guns) типа L119, бронированные гусеничные машины Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance. Военно-морская служба или «морпехи» (marines  / jarhead) – высокомобильные силы постоянной готовности, способные по приказу оперативно решать внезапно возникающие в различных регионах задачи нейтрализации конфликтных ситуаций. В качестве средств транспортировки и боевого усиления у них имеются корабли (ships) для перевозки десанта и техники серии HMS Albion, подводные лодки (submarines) и плавучие военные аэродромы — авианосцы (aircraft carriers) серии HMS «Queen Elizabeth» (R08) и HMS «Prince of Wales» (R09) с двумя «островами» в надстройке. Основу Военно-воздушных сил составляет боевая авиация (military aviation), которая осуществляет защиту национальной территории с воздуха (air defense), оказывают помощь терпящим бедствие морским и воздушным судам, а также принимают непосредственное участие в гуманитарных (humanitarian operation) и миротворческих операциях (peacekeeping mission). Медицинская служба Британии считается одной из самых мощных в мире. В её составе — 6 медицинских полков (Medical Regiments), 10 полевых госпиталей (Field Hospitals), несколько десятков медицинских и реабилитационных центров (Medical Centres and Primary Care Rehabilitation Facilities) и другие службы. Интересно! Медицинской службе принадлежит госпитальное судно (Royal Fleet Auxiliary Argus) – корабль постоянной готовности к непредвиденной ситуации, оснащённый самым современным диагностическим оборудованием. Здесь есть даже компьютерный томограф (computer tomograph (CT)).

Наверняка вам интересно знать, какие воинские звания (military ranks) существуют в британской армии. Хорошо разбираться в них можно только после военной службы. Взгляните на знак отличия (an insignia), по которому можно определить чин, и попробуйте сопоставить с реальными людьми или героями кинофильмом. Возможно вы узнаете кто перед вами. Кстати, Главнокомандующим Британской армии является монарх (monarch). Именно ему все служащие дают присягу. Сейчас это королева Елизавета II.

The Head Of The General Staff / Глава Британской Армии – Глава Генерального Штаба

Admiral of the Fleet / адмирал флота (самый высокий чин во флоте)

General of the Army / генерал Армии (самый высокий чин в период войн)

Lieutenant general / генерал-лейтенант (руководит формированием не менее корпуса)

Major general / генерал-майор (руководит крупными формированиями не менее дивизии)

General / генерал (самый высокий чин, назначается Начальником Штаба Обороны или его заместителем)

Brigadier / бригадный генерал или бригадир (низшее генеральское звание)

Colonel / полковник (обычно служит в штабе, редко выступает в качестве полевого командира)

Major / майор (руководит группой не более 120 человек, отвечает за её боевые действия и снабжение солдат всем необходимым)

Captain / капитан (руководит группой не более 120 человек, отвечает за разведывательные мероприятия)

Lieutenant colonel / подполковник (командует несколькими взводами общей численностью до 650 человек, следит за ходом операций с участием своего подразделения)

Warrant officer / уорент-офицер (занимается обучением новичков)

Sergeant / сержант («правая» рука взводного)

Corporal / капрал (командует миномётным расчётом или экипажем танкистов)

Petty officer / старшина (младший офицер на флоте, соответствует сержанту в армейских частях)

Lance corporal / младший капрал (руководит звеном)

Private soldier / рядовой

Able seaman / матрос

Cadet / учащийся военного заведения

Иерархия войсковых подразделений

Войсковые структуры включают в себя ряд формирований, из которых самым маленьким является звено или огневая группа (crew), способная действовать автономно в бою или атаке.

Несколько огневых групп организованы в отряд  (squad) или секцию во главе с командиром (commander).

Два или более отрядов представляют собой взвод (platoon), которые объединяются в роту (company).

Роты могут быть как самостоятельными единицами, так и сгруппированными в полк (regiment) или батальон (battalion).

Батальон – самая маленькая военная организация, которая может выполнять боевые операции. Он имеет собственные боеприпасы (ammunition) , одноразовые ракетные установки и ручные гранаты (hand grenades), пайки, воду, медицинское оборудование (medical equipment) и транспортные средства. Чаще всего батальон является частью полка (regiment) или бригады (brigade).

Бригада – тактическое формирование, которое может быть узкоспециализированным – артиллерийское, кавалерийское. Возглавляет её бригадный генерал. Бригада имеет свой штаб, личный состав, средства связи. Более двух бригад или полков составляют дивизию (division).

Несколько дивизий формируются в корпуса (corps), которые также имеют свою специализацию – медицинский корпус, бронетанковый корпус и другие.

Верхушка этого своеобразного «айсберга» – полевая армия (field army).

Англоязычные армии обычно нумеруются, однако в дополнение к числовому названию часто присоединяют географическое (Британская армия Рейна).

Полезные «военные» глаголы и выражения с ними:

be demobilize / демобилизоваться

to blow up / взрывать

to command / командовать

to shoot / выстрелить

to retreat / отступать

to hold the line / держать строй

to battle / сражаться

to withdraw troops / вывести войска

to give an order / отдать приказ

to fire / вести огонь

to mortar / обстреливать миномётных огнём

to block the enemy / блокировать неприятеля

to surround the enemy / окружить неприятеля

to give up without a fight / сдаться без боя

lactical air command / тактическое воздушное командование

logistics operations center / центр управления тылом

intelligence officer / разведчик

infantryman / пехотинец

mine road block / заминированный участок

motor vehicle / военный автомобиль

Успех армии определятся выучкой и дисциплиной личного состава. Ещё одна составляющая – это обеспечение его современным вооружением. Оружие имеет различное назначение:

submachine gun / автомат

assault rifle / штурмовая винтовка

machine-gun / пулемёт

light machine gun Minimi / «лёгкий» пулемёт «Миними»

signal pistol / ракетница

combat shotgun / полуавтоматический дробовик

mortar / миномёт

grenade launcher / ручной гранатомёт

cannon / артиллерийское орудие

sea torpedo / морская торпеда

missile / баллистическая ракета

cruise missile / крылатая ракета

rocket / обычная ракета

bullet / пуля

ammunition / боеприпасы

hand grenade / ручная граната

mortar bomb / миномётная мина

weapon system / ракетный комплекс

wire-guarded missile /управляемая ракета

manned aerial weapons system / пилотируемая воздушная система оружия

Практически во всех фильмах про армию встречаются сцены, где старший по званию выкрикивает команды, требующие от солдат выполнения разных приёмов. Звучать такие команды (drill commands) могут не совсем привычно для нас. Иногда на слух трудно понять, что именно выговаривает офицер. Представьте себя в роли сержанта. Потренируйтесь перед зеркалом произносить похожие выражения:

Attention! / Смир-но!

At ease! / Воль-но!

About turn! / Кру-гом!

Halt! / Стой!

Present, ARMS! / В караул!

Интересно! Элитой британской армии считаются гурки (Gurkha) — непальские горцы, служащие верой и правдой Её Величеству более 100 лет. Отличительной деталью этого воина является кривой кинжал «кукри», который носится поверх современного обмундирования. Бесстрашные гурки входят в состав пехоты, инженерные (Queen’s Gurkha Engineers) и транспортные (The Queen’s Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment) войска. У них даже есть свой оркестр – Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas, существующий с середины XIX.

Ещё одна национальная гордость в составе Британской Армии – Королевская гвардия, включающая в себя два конных и пять пехотных полков. Помимо парадных и церемониальных функций гвардейцы принимают участие в боевых операциях, правда, сменив медвежьи меховые шапки и красные мундиры на стандартную камуфляжную форму. Отбор кандидатов сюда очень строгий. Однако при этом удостоиться права несения службы могут даже представители национальных меньшинств.

Возможно вы не запомнили сразу столько информации. Рекомендуем запастись блокнотом и ручкой, чтобы составить небольшой словарик основных армейских терминов. Это будет хорошей тренировкой как изучающим английский язык, так и тем, кого интересует всё, что связано с военной тематикой.