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chicken colonel

American  

noun

Military Slang.
  1. a full colonel, as distinguished from a lieutenant colonel.


Etymology

Origin of chicken colonel

An Americanism dating back to 1945–50


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Of his classmates, a dozen or more had won stars while Van Fleet was still a chicken colonel.

From Time Magazine Archive

"What we got was real pros," says a regular chicken colonel at Phan Rang.

From Time Magazine Archive

"Sergeant," the chicken colonel barked, parading into the office.

From The Plague by Teddy Keller

But good heavens," a chicken colonel moaned, "this is all so irregular.

From The Plague by Teddy Keller

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