rank and file

See synonyms for rank and file on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the members of a group or organization apart from its leaders or officers.

Origin of rank and file

1
First recorded in 1590–1600

Other words from rank and file

  • rank-and-file, adjective

Words Nearby rank and file

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use rank and file in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for rank and file

rank and file

noun
  1. the ordinary soldiers of an army, excluding the officers

  2. the great mass or majority of any group or organization, as opposed to the leadership

  1. (modifier) of, relating to, or characteristic of the rank and file: rank-and-file opinion; rank-and-file support

Derived forms of rank and file

  • rank and filer, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for rank and file

rank and file

The people who form the major portion of any group or organization, excluding the leaders: “The rumors of corruption at the top disturbed the party's rank and file.” This phrase comes from military usage, where enlisted men march in ranks (close abreast) and files (one behind another), whereas officers march outside these formations.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with rank and file

rank and file

Followers, the general membership, as in This new senator really appeals to the rank and file in the labor unions. This expression comes from the military, where a rank denotes soldiers standing side by side in a row, and file refers to soldiers standing behind one another. The first recorded figurative use of this term was in 1860.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.