leatherneck

3 8.6

A member of the United States Marine Corps

noun
/ˈlɛðərˌnɛk/

Jargon

: marinero

Now you'll fight like a real leatherneck fights or face a firing squad.
Camp Leatherneck
Leatherneck magazine

Examples

To pay homage to our rugged leathernecks.

Fiction book (1996)
I said, 'All right, leatherneck, let's go.'

Fiction book (1994)
All right, listen up, you sorry bunch of leathernecks!

Flags of Our Fathers (2006)
Always willin' to help out a fellow leatherneck.

Dead Presidents (1995)
Tell us one about Sergeant Steel and his battling leathernecks.

Stand by Me (1986)
The veteran proudly shared stories from his time as a leatherneck in the Marine Corps.
During the ceremony, the leatherneck received a medal for bravery in combat.
Every leatherneck knows the importance of teamwork in the Marines.

Synonyms

Marine

vsleatherneck

110 3.0

A soldier trained to fight on land and at sea in a special military force

is used as a familiar nickname rather than the formal branch name

jarhead

vsleatherneck

NSFW

15 9.9

A person who serves in the United States Marine Corps

is a traditional nickname rather than crude slang

gyrene

vsleatherneck

Archaic

1 9.9

A person who serves in the United States Marine Corps

is a traditional nickname rather than casual slang

devil dog

vsleatherneck

Slang

1 7.2

A member of the United States Marine Corps known for bravery and toughness

is a general nickname without extra bravery emphasis

Surface Forms

leatherneck singular

leathernecks plural

Morphology

leatherneck = leather + neck (opaque) = leather + neck

Although built from the clear words 'leather' + 'neck', the compound is a specialized nickname for US Marines and its meaning is not derivable by standard composition from the parts.

Etymology

Leatherneck comes from the stiff leather collar Marines once wore around the neck to protect it and to keep them holding their head straight. So a leatherneck became a nickname for a United States Marine, and it still means a proud Marine today.