United States Military Ranks

The following is the basic structure of ranks in the U.S. ground forces: these are the ranks that have remained relatively stable through most of U.S. history. Memorize the order (you do not need to memorize the spelling...); there will be a short quiz on this next Friday.

There are a large number of addition grades in all of the services for non-commissioned officers -- about a dozen -- but this will get you started. If you want lots of detail, try http://www.defenselink.mil/specials/insignias/

Enlisted/Non-commissioned (Army, Marines)

• Private (not an officer)
• Corporal
• Sergeant

Commissioned (Army, Marines, Air Force)

• Second Lieutenant
• First Lieutenant
• Captain
• Major
• Lieutenant Colonel
• Colonel
• Brigadier General (1-star)
• Major General (2-star)
• Lieutenant General (3-star)[this is not a typo -- a Lt. General outranks a Maj. General]
• General (4-star)

Notes:

1. The Navy uses a totally different system for all titles. The Air Force has a different system for non-commissioned officers.

2. The "5-star general" rank was used for the top commanders during WWII but was only in use during that period.