The short form for the word officer may cause confusion, especially for people who are unaware of the different applications of the word.
An officer can be one of several things—an authority figure in a commissioned role in places like the U.S. Air Force, a police force, or even a passenger ship, a public servant fulfilling a civic duty, or an executive in an enterprise environment. Sometimes the word applies to politicians or public office bearers in religious organizations. In the U.S. Military, officers can be commissioned or non-commissioned. Non-commissioned officers (NCOs) can be found in all the ranks from corporals to sergeants.
In a corporation, you may find a chief executive officer (CEO) or chief operations officer (COO). It is a term associated with authority and respect. You’ll find abbreviations for different kinds of officers commonly used, even in formal, business, and academic writing.
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These abbreviations often appear as titles, so they must appear before the name of the person. The Department of Defense (DoD) refers to all officers with the title before their names.
The History of the Word
The word officer originated with the Latin word officium, entering the English language in the fourteenth century. The Latin translation means “a person who holds high office.” The word officium evolved into officiarius in Medieval Latin before being adopted by the Anglo-Norman French, who changed the spelling to officier. It was first used as a military term in 1560.
Interestingly, the word officer has given birth to similar names within different cultures and languages. For example, in Swahili, the word afisa is derived from officer and so is the word afsar in Punjabi. Both regions were colonized by the British, who introduced the word to many people in those regions.
Synonyms for Officer
· Representative
· Dignitary
· Executive
· Civil servant
· Bureaucrat
· Appointee
· Administrator
· Manager
· Agent
Antonyms for Officer
· Employee
When to Use the Word
You can use the word to describe officers in the Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard or Navy. Each branch of the military has its own abbreviations. For example, in both the Navy and the Coast Guard, a Petty Officer Third Class is abbreviated as PO3. Chief Warrant Officer can be abbreviated to CWO5.
When writers are tailoring their text for use with a general audience, even those in the military will commonly use the abbreviation Off. for officer. For instance, an author may write Petty Off. Third Class, rather than PO3, if he or she is expecting to be read by a broad audience.
Here are a few examples of different types of officers:
First sergeant
Second lieutenant
Rear admiral
Chief petty officer
Major general
Lieutenant colonel
Chief warrant officer
Brigadier general
Vice admiral
You can also use the word to describe an appointed or elected individual in a government or a corporation.
The common abbreviation to describe people who hold offices of authority and have the mandate to run governments and corporations is also Off. However, because the word officer is part of a larger title, an acronym may negate the need for an abbreviation.
For example:
He is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the company.
In an instance like this, the word officer does not need to be abbreviated as Off.
You may use the word to describe a member of the police force. In this context, you may also find secondary, popular abbreviations for the word, including Ofr. and Offr.
For example:
Offr. Williams responded to the 911 call.
Lastly, you may come across the abbreviation for officer in reference to a licensed mate or master chief in charge of a ship. In this context, the popular abbreviations are Off. or Offr.
For example:
The ship’s master, Off. Carlos Santiago, gave the order to evacuate.
Rules for Abbreviating the Word
Use the abbreviation only where applicable. Do not use the abbreviation for officer on a person without the appropriate rank.
Use the abbreviation before the person’s name and not after. Using the abbreviation after the name should be reserved for academic and professional titles. Officer is an honorary title, so it goes first.
Before you use the abbreviation, introduce the full word and put the abbreviation in parentheses. This should be done at the beginning of the text, so that the reader is familiar with the abbreviated form throughout the text.
When dealing with an audience that might not be familiar with abbreviations, do not use them. Instead, write the word officer in its full form for clarity. For example, first lieutenant being abbreviated as 1st lt may not be a standard abbreviation for an international audience. In such instances, use the full title.
Additional Abbreviations for the U.S. Army
Pay Grade
Title
Abbreviation
E-1
Private
PVT
E-2
Private 2
PV2
E-3
Private First Class
PFC
E-4
Specialist
SPC
E-4
Corporal
CPL
E-5
Sergeant
SGT
E-6
Staff Sergeant
SSG
E-7
Sergeant First Class
SFC
E-8
Master Sergeant
MSG
E-8
First Sergeant
1SG
E-9
Sergeant Major
SGM
E-9
Command Sergeant Major
CSM
E-9 Special
Sergeant Major of the Army
SMA
W-1
Warrant Officer
WO1
W-2
Chief Warrant Officer 2
CW2
W-3
Chief Warrant Officer 3
CW3
W-4
Chief Warrant Officer 4
CW4
W-5
Chief Warrant Officer 5
CW5
O-1
Second Lieutenant
2LT
O-2
First Lieutenant
1LT
O-3
Captain
CPT
O-4
Major
MAJ
O-5
Lieutenant Colonel
LTC
O-6
Colonel
COL
O-7
Brigadier General
BG
O-8
Major General
MG
O-9
Lieutenant General
LTG
O-10
General
GEN
Special
General of the Army
GA
Additional Abbreviations for the United States Air Force
Pay Grade
Title
Abbreviation
E-1
Airman Basic
AB
E-2
Airman
Amn
E-3
Airman First Class
A1C
E-4
Senior Airman or Sergeant
SrA
E-5
Staff Sergeant
SSgt
E-6
Technical Sergeant
TSgt
E-7
Master Sergeant
MSgt
E-8
Senior Master Sergeant
SMSgt
E-8
Senior Master Sergeant
SMSgt
E-9
Chief Master Sergeant
CMSgt
E-9
Command Chief Master Sergeant
CCM
E-9 Special
Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force
CMSAF
O-1
Second Lieutenant
2d Lt
O-2
First Lieutenant
1st Lt
O-3
Captain
Capt
O-4
Major
Maj
O-5
Lieutenant Colonel
Lt Col
O-6
Colonel
Col
O-7
Brigadier General
Brig Gen
O-8
Major General
Maj Gen
O-9
Lieutenant General
Lt Gen
O-10
General Air Force Chief of Staff
Gen
Special
General of the Air Force
GOAF
Additional Abbreviations for the U.S. Navy / Coast Guard
Pay Grade
Title
Abbreviation
E-1
Seaman Recruit
SR
E-2
Seaman Apprentice
SA
E-3
Seaman
SN
E-4
Petty Officer 3rd Class
PO3
E-5
Petty Officer 2nd Class
PO2
E-6
Petty Officer 1st Class
PO1
E-7
Chief Petty Officer
CPO
E-8
Senior Chief Petty Officer
SCPO
E-9
Master Chief Petty Officer
MCPO
E-9
Command Master Chief Petty Officer
MCPOC
E-9
Fleet Master Chief Petty Officer
FLTCM
E-9
Force Master Chief Petty Officer
FORCM
E-9 Special
Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard
MPCOCG
E-9 Special
Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy
MCPON
W-1
Warrant Officer
WO1
W-2
Chief Warrant Officer 2
CWO2
W-3
Chief Warrant Officer 3
CWO3
W-4
Chief Warrant Officer 4
CWO4
W-5
Chief Warrant Officer 5
CWO5
O-1
Ensign
ENS
O-2
Lieutenant, Junior Grade
LTJG
O-3
Lieutenant
LT
O-4
Lieutenant Commander
LCDR
O-5
Commander
CDR
O-6
Captain
CAPT
O-7
Rear Admiral (lower half)
RDML
O-8
Rear Admiral (upper half)
RADM
O-9
Vice Admiral
VADM
O-10
Admiral Chief of Naval Operations /Commandant of the Coast Guard
ADM
O-10 Special
Fleet Admiral
FADM
Additional Abbreviations for the U.S. Marine Corps
Pay Grade
Title
Abbreviation
E-1
Private
Pvt
E-2
Private First Class
PFC
E-3
Lance Corporal
LCpl
E-4
Corporal
Cpl
E-5
Sergeant
Sgt
E-6
Staff Sergeant
SSgt
E-7
Gunnery Sergeant
GySgt
E-8
Master Sergeant
MSgt
E-8
First Sergeant
1stSgt
E-9
Master Gunnery Sergeant
MGySgt
E-9
Sergeant Major
SgtMaj
E-9 Special
Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps
SgtMajMarCor
W-1
Warrant Officer 1
WO1
W-2
Chief Warrant Officer 2
CW2
W-3
Chief Warrant Officer 3
CW3
W-4
Chief Warrant Officer 4
CW4
W-5
Chief Warrant Officer 5
CW5
O-1
Second Lieutenant
2ndLt
O-2
First Lieutenant
1stLt
O-3
Captain
Capt
O-4
Major
Maj
O-5
Lieutenant Colonel
LtCol
O-6
Colonel
Col
O-7
Brigadier General
BGen
O-8
Major General
MajGen
O-9
Lieutenant General
LtGen
O-10
General
Gen
Examples of the Word and Abbreviations in Context
We got a call from New York dispatch, and Offr. Cruz and I responded to it. We learned that there had been a call for asst., but the bldg. appeared to be vacant.
Tom Hanks played the first officer in the movie Captain Phillips, depicting 1st Ofc. Capt. Phillips.
Off. Rodgers runs a tight ship.
“Ousted Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg left the company with stock options and other assets worth about $80 million, but did not receive severance as part of his departure from the embattled company, Boeing disclosed late Friday.” —CNN Business
“Miami Beach Police are investigating the scene of a police involved shooting that sent one officer to the hospital and left one suspect dead Saturday night.” —NBC News
“U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Steve Strohmaier urged people to stay away from rocks and jetties, as a rogue wave could take someone out to sea.” —Oregon Public Broadcasting
Kevin Miller is a growth marketer with an extensive background in Search Engine Optimization, paid acquisition and email marketing. He is also an online editor and writer based out of Los Angeles, CA. He studied at Georgetown University, worked at Google and became infatuated with English Grammar and for years has been diving into the language, demystifying the do's and don'ts for all who share the same passion! He can be found online here.
