COL
Abbreviation with 3 meanings
| Stands for | Colonel (US Army) |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 3 |
| Categories | Military, Writing & Everyday, Religion |
| Also written | Col, Col., col. |
COL has three meanings. The most common are Colonel (US Army) (US Army rank) and Column (citation and bibliography); it can also stand for Colossians.
Meanings of COL at a glance
| # | COL stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colonel (US Army) | Military › US Army Rank |
| 2 | Column | Writing & Everyday › Citation and Bibliography |
| 3 | Colossians | Religion › Bible Book |
1. Colonel (US Army)
Military · US Army Rank Abbreviations
Senior field-grade Army officer, pay grade O-6, whose insignia is a silver eagle. Colonels command brigades of roughly 3,000 to 5,000 soldiers, garrisons and schools, or serve as senior staff officers and chiefs of staff at division and corps.
Example: COL Rivera will host the brigade change of command at 1000 on the parade field.
Nicknamed a "full bird" colonel because of the eagle. The pronunciation "kernel" comes from the French form "coronel," while the spelling was later reshaped after Italian "colonnello." The Navy and Coast Guard equivalent at O-6 is Captain (CAPT). Many colonels attend a senior service college such as the Army War College.
2. Column (col.)
Writing & Everyday · Citation and Bibliography Abbreviations
Identifies a column of text on a page in citations of newspapers, dictionaries, encyclopedias and other works printed in multiple columns, as in "p. 4, col. 2."
Example: The obituary ran in the New York Times on July 12, 1952, p. 15, col. 3.
The plural is cols. Some reference works number columns instead of pages, so a citation gives the column alone. In newspapers a "column" is also a regular opinion feature, and in military ranks Col. means colonel.
3. Colossians (Col.)
Religion · Bible Book Abbreviations
Four-chapter letter to the church at Colossae in Asia Minor, emphasizing the supremacy of Christ over all powers and warning against "philosophy and vain deceit" (2:8). It contains an early hymn describing Christ as "the image of the invisible God" (1:15).
Example: Col. 3:23 urges workers to do everything "heartily, as to the Lord".
In military contexts Col. means colonel, while SBL and Catholic forms write Col without a period. Scholars debate whether Paul wrote it himself. It is closely related in wording to Ephesians and mentions Onesimus, the subject of Philemon.
Related abbreviations
More US Army rank abbreviations
- 1SG – First Sergeant (US Army)
- 2LT – Second Lieutenant (US Army)
- BG – Brigadier General (US Army)
- CDT – Cadet (US Army)
- Cpl – Corporal (US Marine Corps)
- CPT – Captain (US Army)
- CSM – Command Sergeant Major (US Army)
- CW2 – Chief Warrant Officer 2
See all 34 US Army rank abbreviations →