light colonel
- noun
- /laɪt ˈkɜrnəl/
- Jargon
:
teniente coronel
- After years of service, she was promoted to light colonel in the Army.
Examples
-
That's right, I'm a card carrying member of the West Ellington First Baptist Church, and I'm an honorary captain in the State Troopers, and a light colonel in the National Guard, and something else, I don't even know what, Boy Scouts of America.
-
The light colonel, Lowell, General McCord thought, looks like a bright guy, if not much like a Green Beret.
Fiction book (1995) -
You made light colonel.
-
The light colonel was praised for his leadership during the training exercise.
-
During the ceremony, the light colonel received a medal for his bravery.
Synonyms
13
7.0
A senior officer in the army or air force above a major and below a colonel who leads soldiers
How Senior
- Specialized
4
7.0
208
7.7
- Jargon
- Specialized
922
4.9
247
2.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'lieutenant colonel' (a specific military rank) cannot be predicted from 'light' (not heavy) + 'colonel' (a rank); the adjective 'light' does not transparently convey the notion of a particular subordinate rank. This is an informal or non-compositional label whose relation to the constituents is not predictable for a B1 learner, so prior exposure is needed.
Etymology
Light colonel is a playful name for a lieutenant colonel that may come from the idea of a light (less heavy) colonel — like a 'smaller' or 'lighter' version of a full colonel. So, it means the 'rank just below colonel'.