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flag officer
noun
: any of the officers in the navy or coast guard above captain compare general officer
Examples of flag officer in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
To begin with, due to the prestige and pressure of the position, the commanding officer of the royal yacht was always a flag officer, most commonly a Rear Admiral, although the first two to serve were Vice Admirals and Britannia's final CO was a Commodore.
—Lauren Hubbard, Town & Country, 16 Nov. 2020
As of mid-September, 319 officers general and flag officer nominations have been held up in the Senate.
—Ashley Murray, al, 19 Sep. 2023
If the holds don’t lift by the end of the year, nearly 650 of the more than 850 general and flag officer nominations will be affected, according to a Department of Defense official.
—Ashley Murray, al, 19 Sep. 2023
Nearly 90% of the military’s general and flag officers are expected to be affected by Tuberville’s hold by the end of the year, Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., chairman of the committee, said last week.
—Svetlana Shkolnikova Stars and Stripes (tns), al, 13 Sep. 2023
The hold affects only those at the very top — generals and flag officers.
—Sudiksha Kochi, USA TODAY, 9 Aug. 2023
There are currently more than 270 general and flag officers pending final confirmation from the Senate.
—Eleanor Watson, CBS News, 31 July 2023
The Pentagon has said Tuberville’s holds are putting the nation’s military readiness at risk, as 650 general and flag officers will require Senate confirmation by year’s end.
—Glenn Kessler, Anchorage Daily News, 26 July 2023
But senior lawmakers in recent weeks have worked to provide Tuberville with an off-ramp to the impasse, which is so far holding up the nominations of some 260 general and flag officers.
—David Sivak, Washington Examiner, 12 July 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'flag officer.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
from such officers being entitled to display a flag with one or more stars indicating rank
First Known Use
1665, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near flag officer
Cite this Entry
“Flag officer.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flag%20officer. Accessed 10 Jun. 2024.
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