#Army lingo full#

Example: 'I been blowed up six times this year.'Ĭhoo) Containerized Housing Unit. A chopper is a kind of motorcycle, not an aircraft.īlack (on ammo, fuel, water, etc.): Almost out.īlowed up:Hit by an IED. 'Chopper' is rarely used, except in movies, where it is always used. They may still be called 'choppers' in the movies, but troops universally refer to them as 'birds.'īird:Helicopter. military helicopter takes off in southern Afghanistan. The Big Voice will also warn of scheduled explosions, usually to destroy captured weapons.

When incoming rocket or mortar fire is detected by radar systems, the Big Voice automatically broadcasts a siren and instructions to take cover. But these terms are critical to speaking the current language of soldiers, and understanding it when they speak to others.īig Voice: On military bases, loudspeakers broadcast urgent messages. And some of the terms originated prior to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. This list is by no means exhaustive (a few phrases were too salty for publishing). military never 'retreats' - rather it conducts a 'tactical retrograde.' military drawdown in Afghanistan - which is underway but still awaiting the outcome of a proposedīilateral security agreement - is often referred to by soldiers as 'the retrograde,' which is an old military euphemism for retreat. Soldiers fighting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have developed an expansive new military vocabulary, taking elements from popular culture as well as the doublespeak of the military industrial complex.

Slang changes with the times, and the military is no different.

#Army lingo full#

soldiers to hear discussions and watch movies about modern wars when the dialogue is full of obsolete slang, like 'chopper' and 'GI.'