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.
The decision was controversial because every commanding officer in the British military has a legal obligation to alert military police if they become aware that someone under their command may have committed a war crime.
From BBC • May 28, 2026
“Air units will be restricted from responding to requests for service in the affected areas,” wrote Larsen, the acting commanding officer of Air Support Division.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 28, 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
The term of a commanding officer was usually no more than three years, and we had been through several by 1970.
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.
