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Flag commissioned officers
	Armies, air forces (non-Commonwealth)	Navies, coast guards	Air forces (Commonwealth system)
	Field marshal or Marshal or Captain general	Admiral of the fleet	Marshal of the air force
	General or colonel general or army general	Admiral	Air chief marshal
	Lieutenant general or army corps general	Vice admiral	Air marshal
	Major general or divisional general	Rear admiral or Counter admiral	Air vice-marshal
	Brigadier or brigadier general	Commodore or flotilla admiral	Air commodore
Senior commissioned officers
	Colonel	(Ship-of-the-line) Captain	Group captain
	Lieutenant colonel	Frigate captain or Commander	Wing commander
	Major or commandant	Corvette captain or Lieutenant commander	Squadron leader
Junior commissioned officers
	Captain	Lieutenant	Flight lieutenant
	First lieutenant or lieutenant	Lieutenant junior grade or sub-lieutenant	Flying officer
	Second lieutenant or junior lieutenant	Ensign or midshipman	Pilot officer
	Officer cadet	Officer cadet	Flight cadet
Non-commissioned officers
	Warrant officer or sergeant major	Warrant officer or chief petty officer	Warrant officer
	Sergeant	Petty officer	Sergeant
Enlisted ranks
	Corporal or bombardier	Leading seaman	Corporal
	Lance corporal or Lance bombardier or Specialist	Able seaman	Leading aircraftman or Air specialist
	Private or gunner or trooper or sapper	Seaman	Aircraftman or airman or aviator

A private is a soldier, usually with the lowest rank in many armies. Soldiers with the rank of private may be conscripts or they may be professional (career) soldiers.

The term derives from the term "private soldier". "Private" comes from the Latin word privus or perhaps privo that meant an individual person and later an individual without an office.^[1]^[2]

^ Harper, Douglas. "private (n.)". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
^ Oliver, Raymond (1983). Why is the Colonel Called Kernal? (PDF). Sacramento, CA: Office of History, Sacramento Air Logistics Center. p. 2. Retrieved 18 November 2024.

Private (rank)