Word of the Day: Colonel

colonel

colo-nel / kûr-nəl

noun

1. a commissioned officer in the US Army, Air Force or Marine Corps, ranking above a lieutenant colonel and below a brigadier general or a similar rank in other countries

When we find him again, his mustachios and the title of Colonel on his card are the only relics of his military profession.

From “Vanity Fair” by William Makepeace Thackeray, 1811 – 1863

2. an honorary title awarded in some Southern US states, particularly on visiting dignitaries or as a title of respect for an old man

In 1935, Kentucky Governor Ruby Laffoon issued a ceremonial decree that commissioned [Harland] Sanders as an honorary colonel.

Christopher Klein, “8 Things You May Not Know About the Real Colonel Sanders”, ‘History’, www.history.com/news/8-facts-real-colonel-sanders-kfc, accessed October 31, 2023

and

One has to remember that every failure can be a stepping stone to something better.

Colonel Sanders, 1890 – 1980