rank and file

American  

noun

1. the members of a group or organization apart from its leaders or officers.

2. rank.

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rank and file British  

noun

1. the ordinary soldiers of an army, excluding the officers

2. the great mass or majority of any group or organization, as opposed to the leadership

3. (modifier) of, relating to, or characteristic of the rank and file

   rank-and-file opinion

   rank-and-file support

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rank and file Cultural  

1. The people who form the major portion of any group or organization, excluding the leaders: “The rumors of corruption at the top disturbed the party's rank and file.” This phrase comes from military usage, where enlisted men march in ranks (close abreast) and files (one behind another), whereas officers march outside these formations.

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rank and file Idioms  

1. Followers, the general membership, as in This new senator really appeals to the rank and file in the labor unions. This expression comes from the military, where a rank denotes soldiers standing side by side in a row, and file refers to soldiers standing behind one another. The first recorded figurative use of this term was in 1860.

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Other Word Forms

• rank and filer
  noun
• rank-and-file
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of rank and file

First recorded in 1590–1600

Example Sentences

Rank and file soldiers dumped their uniforms and weapons without firing a shot and went home.

From BBC • Dec. 19, 2024

Rank and file union workers at the company have expressed anger and frustration over the deal, saying that wage increases weren't commensurate in the face of rising inflation.

From Reuters • Mar. 13, 2023

Rank and file officers are carrying surgical masks and latex gloves along with their usual pistols, Mace and handcuffs.

From New York Times • Apr. 14, 2020

Rank and file employees probably don’t like to be maligned either.

From Forbes • Dec. 2, 2014

Rank and file on both sides conceived a respect for one another in the war, which the educated class somehow missed.

From Europe—Whither Bound? Being Letters of Travel from the Capitals of Europe in the Year 1921 by Graham, Stephen