Why do the English say leftenant instead of lieutenant?
According to military customs, a lower ranking soldier walks on the left side of a senior officer. This courtesy developed when swords were still used on the battle field. The lower ranked soldier on the “left” protected the senior officers left side. Therefore, the term leftenant developed.
What’s the difference between lieutenant and leftenant?
As nouns the difference between lieutenant and leftenant is that lieutenant is (military) the lowest commissioned officer rank or ranks in many military forces while leftenant is an archaic spelling of lieutenant.
How does the Royal Navy pronounce lieutenant?
left-tenant
From Latin then, lieutenant literally means “place holder” and the military lieutenant acts on behalf of—or in place of—their commanding officer. No one can really say why in the British Army the word is pronounced “left-tenant” but it’s notable that in the Royal Navy the pronunciation seems half way across the ocean.
Why do Brits say bloody?
Bloody. Don’t worry, it’s not a violent word… it has nothing to do with “blood”.”Bloody” is a common word to give more emphasis to the sentence, mostly used as an exclamation of surprise. Something may be “bloody marvellous” or “bloody awful“. Having said that, British people do sometimes use it when expressing anger…
Is Captain higher than LT?
In the British Army and in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, a second lieutenant is the lowest ranking commissioned officer. Above him in those U.S. services comes a first lieutenant—lieutenant in the British Army—and then a captain. In the Russian Army there is still another rank, senior lieutenant.
Why do Brits pronounce Lieutenant “Leftenant”?
In England (and her colonies, except for America of course) it is pronounced “leftentant” because it is bastardization of the French pronunciation, which has that ever-so-French, back of the mouth, oooggff sound at the end of the first syllable. In the old US of A, they just pronounce it how it is spelled.
What is the English pronunciation of lieutenant?
Pronunciation: Pronunciation of lieutenant is generally split between the forms /lɛfˈtɛnənt/ (About this soundlisten) lef-TEN-ənt and /luːˈtɛnənt/ (About this soundlisten) loo-TEN-ənt, with the former generally associated with the armies of British Commonwealth countries and the Republic of Ireland; and the latter generally associated with anyone from the United States or other Western Hemisphere countries. The early history of the pronunciation is unclear; Middle English spellings
What is the etymology of the word lieutenant?
The word lieutenant derives from French; the lieu meaning “place” as in a position (cf. in lieu of); and tenant meaning “holding” as in “holding a position”; thus a “lieutenant” is a placeholder for a superior, during their absence (compare the Latin locum tenens).
What is the definition of lieutenant?
The definition of a lieutenant is a deputy, aide or official ranking under a captain. An example of a lieutenant is a deputy sheriff. YourDictionary definition and usage example. “Lieutenant.”.