Since today is Memorial Day, a U.S. holiday commemorating soldiers who died in the line of duty, we’ll be discussing military titles and their abbreviations.
The Associated Press Stylebook lists rules to follow when referring to military titles.
1. Capitalize a military rank when written before a person’s name. (This is the general rule for titles. That’s why you see “President Barack Obama” with a capitalized letter p.)
2. On first reference, place the title before the person’s full name.
3. On subsequent references, only refer to the person’s last name. (This is also a general rule when dealing with titles.)
4. Ranks written separate from a person’s name should be lowercased.
Whether you spell out the entire military title or use an abbreviation depends on the title.
| Title name / Rank | Usage before name |
| Army | |
| Commissioned Officers | |
| general | Gen. |
| lieutenant general | Lt. Gen. |
| major general | Maj. Gen. |
| brigadier general | Brig. Gen. |
| colonel | Col. |
| lieutenant colonel | Lt. Col. |
| major | Maj. |
| captain | Capt. |
| first lieutenant | 1st. Lt. |
| second lieutenant | 2nd. Lt. |
| Warrant Officers | |
| Warrant officer | Warrant Officer |
| Chief warrant officer two | Chief Warrant Officer 2 |
| Chief warrant officer three | Chief Warrant Officer 3 |
| Chief warrant officer four | Chief Warrant Officer 4 |
| Chief warrant officer five | Chief Warrant Officer 5 |
| Enlisted Personnel | |
| sergeant major of the Army | Sgt. Maj. of the Army |
| command sergeant major | Command Sgt. Maj. |
| sergeant major | Sgt. Maj. |
| first sergeant | 1st Sgt. |
| master sergeant | Master Sgt. |
| sergeant first class | Sgt. 1st Class |
| staff sergeant | Staff Sgt. |
| sergeant | Sgt. |
| corporal | Cpl. |
| specialist | Spc. |
| private first class | Pfc. |
| private | Pvt. |
| Navy, Coast Guard | |
| Commissioned Officers | |
| admiral | Adm. |
| vice admiral | Vice Adm. |
| rear admiral upper half | Rear Adm. |
| rear admiral lower half | Rear Adm. |
| captain | Capt. |
| commander | Cmdr. |
| lieutenant commander | Lt. Cmdr. |
| lieutenant | Lt. |
| lieutenant junior grade | Lt. j.g. |
| ensign | Ensign |
| Warrant Officers | |
| chief warrant officer | Chief Warrant Officer |
| Enlisted Personnel | |
| master chief petty officer of the Navy | Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy |
| master chief petty officer | Master Chief Petty Officer |
| senior chief petty officer | Senior Chief Petty Officer |
| chief petty officer | Chief Petty Officer |
| petty officer first class | Petty Officer 1st Class |
| petty officer second class | Petty Officer 2nd Class |
| petty officer third class | Petty Officer 3rd Class |
| seaman | Seaman |
| seaman apprentice | Seaman Apprentice |
| seaman recruit | Seaman Recruit |
| Marine Corps | |
| Commissioned Officers: Ranks and abbreviations are same as for Army. | |
| Warrant Officers: Ratings are same as for Navy. | |
| Others | |
| sergeant major of the Marine Corps | Sgt. Maj. of the Marine Corps |
| sergeant major | Sgt. Maj. |
| master gunnery sergeant | Master Gunnery Sgt. |
| first sergeant | 1st Sgt. |
| master sergeant | Master Sgt. |
| gunnery sergeant | Gunnery Sgt. |
| corporal | Cpl. |
| lance corporal | Lance Cpl. |
| private first class | Pfc. |
| private | Pvt. |
| Air Force | |
| Commissioned Officers: Ranks and abbreviations are same as for Army. | |
| Enlisted Designations | |
| chief master sergeant of the Air Force | Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force |
| chief master sergeant | Chief Master Sgt. |
| senior master sergeant | Senior Master Sgt. |
| master sergeant | Master Sgt. |
| technical sergeant | Tech. Sgt. |
| staff sergeant | Staff Sgt. |
| senior airman | Senior Airman |
| airman first class | Airman 1st Class |
| airman | Airman |
| Airman basic | Airman |
