commanding officer
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of commanding officer
First recorded in 1790–1800
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.
Tolkan was also well known for drilling Maverick and Goose with swift reprimands and tough love between puffs of his cigar as their commanding officer, Tom “Stinger” Jardian, in the 1986 blockbuster “Top Gun.”
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026
Capt. David Skarosi, the Ford’s commanding officer, acknowledged what he called the “sting” of the additional extension, adding it caught even him by surprise.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 21, 2026
Maybe not in “Star Trek,” where survivors of its all-absorbing Borg collective include a Starship captain and a commanding officer.
From Salon • Dec. 29, 2025
Capt James Allen, commanding officer of RFA Tidesurge, said the vessel had provided "a show of presence and deterrence as we transited from the North Sea to the English Channel".
From BBC • Dec. 11, 2025
If the commanding officer was coming, the warders on duty would blow a whisde to warn us to pick up our tools.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
