second lieutenant

noun

: a commissioned officer of the lowest rank in the army, air force, or marine corps

Examples of second lieutenant in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Following college, Smith joined the U.S. Marines and was commissioned a second lieutenant. Los Angeles Times, 23 June 2025 West Point granted Peter honorary admission to the class of 2025, which is now preparing to take their commission as second lieutenants and potentially lead soldiers into battle. James Laporta, CBS News, 23 May 2025 His time at Oxford was interrupted by his World War II service in the Coldstream Guards, initially as a second lieutenant. Lawrence D. Freedman, Foreign Affairs, 1 Jan. 2020 Hendrickson, who is a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force, expounded more about his faith in the post-match media availability with reporters. Ryan Gaydos, Fox News, 24 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for second lieutenant

Word History

First Known Use

1702, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of second lieutenant was in 1702

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Cite this Entry

“Second lieutenant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/second%20lieutenant. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

second lieutenant

noun
: a military commissioned officer of the lowest rank

More from Merriam-Webster on second lieutenant

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