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English colonel is pronounced the same as kernel. This seems odd, but there is an explanation. In many languages when a word contains two identical or similar sounds, one of these sounds will often change over a period of time. This kind of change is called dissimilation. So when the Italian word colonello was taken into French, it became coronel; and the word was borrowed by the English from the French in this form. Later the spelling colonel came to be used in order to reflect the Italian origin of the word. But by then the pronunciation with r was well established.
Examples of colonel in a Sentence
Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 28 Oct. 2024
Sergei Skripal, 73, is a former colonel in Russia's Military Intelligence Service who was convicted in 2006 of acting as a double agent and sneaking the identities of other Russian agents to MI6, Britain's spy service.
—Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA TODAY, 1 Oct. 2024
Hughes, her son, Glenn, in tow, came from Japan as a housekeeper for a military colonel who was transferred to Los Alamitos.
—Laylan Connelly, Orange County Register, 1 Oct. 2024
Lucía Gutiérrez, a Spanish Civil Guard colonel, leaves her aged mother and daughter at home.
—John Hopewell, Variety, 23 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for colonel 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'colonel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near colonel
Cite this Entry
“Colonel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/colonel. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
an altered form of earlier coronel "colonel," from early French coronel (same meaning), from early Italian colonnello "colonel, column of soldiers," derived from Latin columna "column" — related to column
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