corporal

1 of 3

noun (1)

: a noncommissioned officer ranking in the army above a private first class and below a sergeant and in the marine corps above a lance corporal and below a sergeant

corporal

2 of 3

adjective

1

: of, relating to, or affecting the body

corporal punishment

corporal works of mercy

2

obsolete : corporeal, physical

corporally

ˈkȯr-p(ə-)rə-lē 

adverb

corporal

3 of 3

noun (2)

cor·​po·​ral ˈkȯr-p(ə-)rəl 

: a linen cloth on which the eucharistic elements are placed

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The Various Uses of Corporal

The adjective corporal today usually appears in the phrase corporal punishment, which means "bodily punishment". This used to include such acts as mutilation, branding, imprisonment, and even death. But today execution comes under the separate heading of "capital punishment", which originally involved losing your head (capit- meaning "head"). Milder forms of corporal punishment are used by American parents, and were once common in schools as well. Corporal is occasionally used in other ways; in the traditional church, the "corporal works of mercy" include seven helpful acts such as sheltering the homeless and burying the dead. Corporal as a military rank actually comes from caporal—which has the same root as capital.

Synonyms

Adjective

• animal
• bodily
• carnal
• corporeal
• fleshly
• material
• physical
• somatic

Examples of corporal in a Sentence

Adjective

started to suffer the corporal ailments that come with advancing age

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

LaVigne, a master corporal at the time of his death, was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant. —Olivia Lloyd, Sun Sentinel, 26 Mar. 2025

In July 2009, Judy Meikle, at age 57 and of Winnetka, Ill., received the heart of Benjamin Kopp, a 21-year-old Army Ranger corporal from Rosemount who died eight days after being shot during a combat operation in southern Afghanistan. —Nick Ferraro, Twin Cities, 22 Mar. 2025

Adjective

Davis is expected to be charged with five counts of misdemeanor battery, battery causing serious injury, use of force likely to cause significant injury, inflicting corporal injury on a spouse and criminal threats. —Jasmine Mendez, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2025

Welsh, 36, came to the prison in 2023 when he was sentenced to 18 years for corporal injury on a person within seven years of a prior conviction and assault with a firearm. —Lesley Cosme Torres, People.com, 7 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

borrowed from Middle French, "lowest noncommissioned officer," alteration (by association with cors, corps "body," Latin corporālis "of the body") of caporal, borrowed from Italian caporale "leader of a small military unit," probably from Medieval Latin capor-, capur-, restructuring of Latin capit- (stem of caput "head") + Italian -ale, noun and adjective suffix, going back to Latin -ālis -al entry 1 — more at head entry 1

Adjective

Middle English corporel, corporal, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French corporel, borrowed from Latin corporālis "of the body, corporeal," from corpor-, corpus "body" + -ālis -al entry 1 — more at midriff

Noun (2)

Middle English corporalle, borrowed from Anglo-French & Medieval Latin; Anglo-French corporal, borrowed from Medieval Latin corporāle (probably originally as modifying linteāmen "linen cloth" or a word of similar sense), from neuter of Latin corporālis "of the body, corporeal" (alluding to the belief that the eucharistic elements are the body of Christ) — more at corporal entry 2

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1579, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing corporal

• corporal punishment
• corporal's guard
• lance corporal

Rhymes for corporal

• puerperal

Kids Definition

corporal

1 of 2 adjective

cor·​po·​ral ˈkȯr-p(ə-)rəl 

: of or relating to the body

whipping and other corporal punishments

corporally

-ē

adverb

corporal

2 of 2 noun

: a noncommissioned officer in the army or marines with a rank just below that of sergeant

Medical Definition

corporal

adjective

cor·​po·​ral ˈkȯr-p(ə-)rəl 

: of, relating to, or affecting the body

corporal punishment