Nearby Words
noun
1.
2.
U.S. Navy. a commissioned officer ranking between lieutenant junior grade and lieutenant commander.
3.
a person who holds an office, civil or military, in subordination to a superior for whom he or she acts: If he can't attend, he will send his lieutenant.
Origin:
1325–75; Middle English < Middle French, noun use of adj. phrase lieu tenant place-holding. See locum tenens, lieu, tenant
1325–75; Middle English < Middle French, noun use of adj. phrase lieu tenant place-holding. See locum tenens, lieu, tenant
Related forms
un·der·lieu·ten·ant, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To lieutenants
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Lieutenants
is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
| an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
lieutenant
late 14c., "one who takes the place of another," from O.Fr. lieu tenant "substitute," lit. "placeholder," from lieu "place" + tenant, prp. of tenir "to hold." The notion is of a "substitute" for higher authority. Specific military sense of "officer next in rank to a captain" is from 1570s. Pronunciation
EXPANDwith lef- is common in Britain, and spellings to reflect it date back to 14c., but the origin of it is mysterious.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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