private soldier
Lowest military rank
A private soldier is a member of the armed forces holding the lowest enlisted rank, without command authority over others.
The term emphasizes the distinction from officers and non-commissioned officers, though in casual usage *private* alone suffices.
He enlisted as a private soldier and worked his way up to sergeant.
The phrase appears more commonly in British English and in formal or historical military contexts.
- conscriptionMandatory military enrollment
- boot campInitial military instruction program
- basic trainingInitial military instruction
- infantrymanGround-based combat soldier
- drillHole-boring device
rifleman · marksmanship · militia · doughboy · recruit · musketeer · grenadier · rank and file · cannon fodder · front line · trench warfare · teamwork · pikeman · discipline · sapper · enlisted · legionary · physical fitness
- hired fightersmercenary, gun for hire, hired gun, sellsword, condottiere
private soldiergeneral
Widespread, not specialized
officer · commanding officer · field marshal · admiral · colonel
private soldiercivilian
Non-military person
noncombatant · conscientious objector · pacifist · draft dodger
private, soldier, privately, privation, privy, privacy, privatize, privatization, deprive