colonel

[ kur-nl ]

/ ˈkɜr nl /

noun

an officer in the U.S. Army, Air Force, or Marine Corps ranking between lieutenant colonel and brigadier general: corresponding to a captain in the U.S. Navy.

a commissioned officer of similar rank in the armed forces of some other nations.

an honorary title bestowed by some Southern states, as to those who have brought honor to the state, prominent businesspersons, visiting celebrities, or the like: When the vice president visited the state he was made a Kentucky colonel.

Older Use. (in the South) a title of respect prefixed to the name of distinguished elderly men.

Nearby words

Origin of colonel

1540–50; < Middle French < Italian colon(n)ello, equivalent to colonn(a) column + -ello < Latin -ellus diminutive suffix; so named because such an officer originally headed the first column or company of a regiment

Related formscolo·nel·cy, noun

Pronunciation note

Colonel

[kur-nl] /ˈkɜr nl/, with its medial l pronounced as [r] /r/, illustrates one source for the apparent vagaries of English spelling: divergence between a word's orthographic development and its established pronunciation. In this case, English borrowed from French two variant forms of the same word, one pronounced with medial and final [l] /l/, and a second reflecting dissimilation of the first [l] /l/ to [r] /r/. After a period of competition, the dissimilated form triumphed in pronunciation, while the spelling colonel became the orthographic standard.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for colonel

Those who spoke out against it included a fellow Air Force colonel, Lindsay Graham, who also happens to be a U.S. senator.
The Luxury Homes That Torture and Your Tax Dollars Built|Michael Daly|December 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A judge there would have wide latitude in sentencing and could send the colonel to prison.
Commando Colonel Accused of Exposing his Lover to HIV|Jacob Siegel|November 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
An Army National Guard colonel charged with knowingly exposing a woman to HIV faced his accuser in a military courtroom on Monday.
Commando Colonel Accused of Exposing his Lover to HIV|Jacob Siegel|November 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Being called to duty, the colonel was forced to leave the young girl behind.
New York’s Scariest Night Out: The Ghosts, Rats, and Lunatics of ‘Nightmare New York’|Justin Jones|October 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST

“All this boosts the morale of the Afghan Taliban,” says the colonel.
Kabul Airport Attack Comes as Pakistani Fighters Join Afghan Taliban|Sami Yousafzai|July 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
No doubt the colonel had started on his journey to Lancaster.
The Manchester Rebels of the Fatal '45|William Harrison Ainsworth
"There's a fox's mask," said the Colonel at the bottom of the table, pointing a triangular bit out.
The Magnetic North|Elizabeth Robins (C. E. Raimond)
The colonel had looked upon him with sombre eyes the night of the dance.
Lanier of the Cavalry|Charles King
The colonel had thrust the skeleton of John out of the passage.
A Romance of the West Indies|Eugne Sue
Just then an aide rode up, and the Colonel gave a sharp command which put an end to this desultory talk.
The Crisis, Complete|Winston Churchill

British Dictionary definitions for colonel

colonel

/ (ˈkɜːnəl) /

noun

an officer of land or air forces junior to a brigadier but senior to a lieutenant colonel

Derived Formscolonelcy or colonelship, noun

Word Origin for colonel

C16: via Old French, from Old Italian colonnello column of soldiers, from colonna column

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for colonel

colonel

1540s, coronell, from Middle French coronel (16c.), modified by dissimilation from Italian colonnella "commander of a column of soldiers at the head of a regiment," from compagna colonella "little column company," from Latin columna "pillar" (see hill). English spelling modified 1580s in learned writing to conform with the Italian form (via translations of Italian military manuals), and pronunciations with "r" and "l" coexisted 17c.-18c., but the earlier pronunciation prevailed. Spanish coronel, from Italian, shows a similar evolution by dissimilation.