rank and file

noun

1. the members of a group or organization apart from its leaders or officers.
2. rank ¹( def 7a ).

rank and file

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

rank and file

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.

Derived Forms

• rank and filer, noun

Other Words From

• rank-and-file adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of rank and file¹

First recorded in 1590–1600

Idioms and Phrases

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.

Example Sentences

Asked what kind of support he got from rank-and-file Democrats, he paused before replying with a hearty laugh.

From The Daily Beast

Rank-and-file conservatives by and large do not share these extreme anti-equality, anti-abortion, anti-women attitudes.

From The Daily Beast

Some rank-and-file evangelicals may have switched their position or even advocated for reform.

From The Daily Beast

In recent Republican congressional primaries, the rank-and-file has voted “no” to reflexive interventionism.

From The Daily Beast

Party leaders backed McMorris Rodgers; the conservative rank-and-file supported Price.

From The Daily Beast

Most ominous feature of it all, republicanism gained a large footing in the rank-and-file of the army.

From Project Gutenberg

For the leaders, it may last a little longer than for the rank-and-file.

From Project Gutenberg

They were followed by the great bulk of the rank-and-file of so-called Jewish Socialists.

From Project Gutenberg

During the Crimean War, he took care of the fame of the rank-and-file of the army.

From Project Gutenberg

The losses on our side consisted of a colonel killed, and seventy-four rank-and-file wounded.

From Project Gutenberg