chief petty officer
2
7.3
- noun
- /ʧif ˈpɛti ˈɔfɪsər/
- Specialized
:
suboficial mayor
- As a chief petty officer, she mentored younger sailors and helped them advance in their careers.
- chief petty officer of the Navy
- retired chief petty officer
- master chief petty officer
Examples
-
I'm taking my chief petty officer exams now.
-
It was Kulakov, the chief petty officer.
Fiction book (2002) -
Ah, always good to meet another chief petty officer.
-
I was a chief petty officer.
-
My father was a chief petty officer and I went to the Academy.
-
A chief petty officer shall not drink.
-
For 25 years, he was chief petty officer in your Navy.
-
Sherry, how much does a chief petty officer get?
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I'm Wellbeck, the chief petty officer.
-
You're fined one half month's pay for six months... restricted to the base for two months... and are hereby reduced in rank to chief petty officer.
How Senior
- Specialized
3
3.6
2
6.5
- Specialized
2
7.3
- Jargon
5
8.6
59
2.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components 'chief' (senior) and 'officer' (military rank) give learners a general idea that this is a senior naval rank, but 'petty' here is a non-literal, technical element (part of the fixed rank 'petty officer') and does not mean 'minor' in the phrase. Because the exact rank relationship and terminology are specific to military phraseology and cannot be fully derived from the ordinary meanings of the parts, the item is partially but not fully predictable to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Chief petty officer comes from putting chief (the leader) before petty and officer, where 'petty' used to mean 'small' or 'junior'. So a chief petty officer is the senior leader among the petty officers, which is why it means a senior noncommissioned officer in the navy.