buck private

Meanings

nounbuck private (plural buck privates)

USslanggovernmentA private soldier keen ("bucking") for promotion; an ambitious private.
Bedell Smith was a shopkeeper's son from Indiana who rose from buck private to general without the polish of West Point or a college degree.
2007, Tim Weiner, Legacy of Ashes, Penguin, published 2008, pages 15–16

nounan enlisted man of the lowest rank in the Army or Marines

Similar

privatecommon soldier

Broader

enlisted man

Also see

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Cite this entry

APA

buck private. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buck%20private

MLA

“buck private.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buck%20private. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “buck private,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buck%20private.