commanding officer

noun

: an officer in command
especially : an officer in the armed forces in command of an organization or installation

Examples of commanding officer in a Sentence

He reported the incident to his commanding officer. reported directly to the fort's commanding officer
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Kelly Higgins, commanding officer of U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles, said in the release. Nathan Diller, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2025 The general, who served as Shagan's commanding officer in Belize, harnesses the soldier's anger and utilizes it for his own purposes by helping to fund and organize the kidnapping and blackmail plots executed by Shagan. Randall Colburn, EW.com, 22 Aug. 2025 As 911 was called, two off-duty officers happened upon the suspect outside the diner and immediately pulled their weapons, NYPD Assistant Chief Melissa Eger, the commanding officer of Patrol Borough Staten Island, said at a press conference after the fatal shooting. Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 16 Aug. 2025 Quornelius Radford, had once been arrested by local authorities on suspicion of drunken driving — but his commanding officers had not known about that incident, officials said. Nbc News, NBC news, 6 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for commanding officer

Word History

First Known Use

1720, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of commanding officer was in 1720

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Cite this Entry

“Commanding officer.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commanding%20officer. Accessed 5 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

commanding officer

noun
: an officer having charge of a military or naval unit, organization, or base
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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