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Glite Dictionary
tour of duty

tour of duty

22 6.0
A set time when a person in the military works in one place
  • noun
  • /tʊr ʌv ˈdjuːti/
  • Jargon
translation icon : período de servicio
  • Many of its soldiers are on their fourth or fifth tour of duty in Iraq or Afghanistan.
  • served a tour of duty
  • three tours of duty
  • one-year tour of duty

He won the Bronze Star for bravery in Vietnam and two tours of duty there.

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Examples

  • I did one tour of duty as a mess cook on a submarine.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • A tour of duty overseas in the service of his country.

    Carbon Copy (1981)

  • I just got back from a tour of duty.

    Boogie Nights (1997)

  • Did I catch you in the middle of a tour of duty?

    One for the Money (2012)

  • My officers have been here three years past their tour of duty.

    Judas (2004)

  • My tour of duty is done.

    Bad Boys: Ride or Die (2024)

  • My tour of duty is over.

    Easy Come, Easy Go (1967)

  • We knew what we were doing when we signed up for this tour of duty.

    Blog text (6)

  • I was in the Navy and served three tours of duty in Southeast Asia, one in Vietnam.

    Academic text (2001)

  • After serving a tour of duty in Iraq, he finally returned home to his family.

Synonyms

tour
vstour of duty
  • Jargon
226 4.1

A time spent doing a job or duty, often in the military

is the time spent working in a place before transfer or leave
stint
vstour of duty
77 5.0

A short fixed time spent doing a job

is specifically about serving at one post before transfer or leave
hitch
vstour of duty
  • Informal
3 6.8

A time spent serving in the military

is the length of service at one place before transfer or leave
enlistment
vstour of duty
3 5.3

A period of time someone serves in the military after joining

is the shorter assignment at a place before transfer or leave
duty tour
vstour of duty
  • Jargon
5.9

A period of time a person spends working at an army post

is the time spent at a place before transfer or being given leave
term of enlistment
vstour of duty
  • Formal
5.7

A fixed period of time someone agrees to serve in the military

is about a single posting period rather than the full contractual length
duty period
vstour of duty
3.1

A set time when a person must work and be available

is the overall time assigned to work at a place before transfer or leave

How Long

tour of duty
  • Jargon
22 6.0
stint
77 5.0

Surface Forms

tour of duty singular
tours of duty plural

Morphology

tour + of + duty

The meaning is directly compositional from 'tour' (a stint or period of service) + 'duty' (a role or responsibility), so a learner who knows both words can infer 'a period of service/assignment'. The noun‑of‑noun structure is common and has close parallels in many languages, making the expression immediately understandable at B1.

Etymology

Tour of duty comes from the idea of the word tour meaning a trip to a place and duty meaning service. Soldiers would travel to a post and do their service for a fixed time before returning, so the phrase means 'a period of time spent working in a particular place before being moved or given leave'.