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military man

military man

31 2.0
A man who serves in the army or other armed forces
  • noun
  • /ˈmɪlɪˌtɛri mæn/
translation icon : militar
  • Prince Philip is a military man through and through.
  • wife of a military man
  • career military man

And then I know the way that, you know, military men think, and it's very different, right?

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Examples

  • Ambassador Albright's pride at seeing America's military men and women serving in such UN operations was to be expected.

    Academic text (1996)
  • At the Pentagon, he was surrounded by military men who knew what to do.

  • My husband was a military man all his life.

  • I'm a military man myself.

  • My father, too, became a career military man, retiring as a chief petty officer after twenty-nine years.

    Academic text (2004)
  • General Holmby, a severe-looking military man, stands and faces the officers.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • All I need is steady, generous income, and that's the one thing a military man can't give me.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • He's not a diplomat but a military man used to ruthless quick action.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • My husband was a military man all his life.

  • Jesse comes from a long line of military men going all the way back to Bull Run.

Synonyms

man
vsmilitary man
3.4

A person who serves in the armed forces, like a soldier

is the explicit military sense rather than the general person sense
marine
vsmilitary man
81 4.4

A soldier trained to fight on land and at sea

is broader and focuses on any male in the armed forces
guardsman
vsmilitary man
  • Jargon
26 5.5

A soldier who stands guard and takes part in ceremonies

is the general male military role rather than a special unit position
enlisted man
vsmilitary man
  • Specialized
16 4.9

A man who serves in the military but is not an officer

includes males of any rank, not only those below officers
serviceman
vsmilitary man
13 2.6

A man who serves in the military

is the same idea described with a different headword
infantryman
vsmilitary man
6 6.3

A soldier who fights on foot in the army

is the wider male military category not limited to foot combat
rifleman
vsmilitary man
5 4.9

A soldier who uses a rifle as their main weapon

is a general male military member not defined by weapon or role
navy man
vsmilitary man
4 2.3

A man who serves in the navy

is broader, covering male members across all service branches
servicemember
vsmilitary man
3 3.4

A person who works in the army or navy and wears a uniform

specifies that the person is male rather than gender neutral
enlisted person
vsmilitary man
1 4.9

A member of the armed forces who is not an officer

adds that the member is male as part of its meaning
military volunteer
vsmilitary man
1 3.5

A person who chooses to join the armed forces instead of being forced to serve

is the male membership idea, not about how enlistment occurred

How Senior

commissioned officer
  • Specialized
3 3.6
noncommissioned officer
  • Specialized
2 6.2
military man
31 2.0
private
76 3.7
recruit
149 3.6

Surface Forms

military man singular
military men plural

Morphology

military + man

The phrase 'military man' is a straightforward adjective + noun combination where 'military' (related to the armed forces) modifies 'man' (adult male), so a learner who knows both words can infer 'a man who serves in the armed forces.' This compositional pattern is regular in English and common across languages, making the meaning immediately predictable to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Military man comes from the simple picture of a man in military uniform, someone trained to follow orders and serve his country. So, it means 'a man who serves in the armed forces'.