How to speak Army

With three years of Army wife experience under my belt, and two years of being a Cadet's girlfriend while he was in ROTC, I can confidently wall the walk and most importantly understand the talk!


Here are some key acronyms and terms you will come across often:

PCS: Permanent Change of Station. You do this every three years or so.

ETS: Expiration Time of Service. When your contract is up.

POV: Privately Owned Vehicle. What civilians drive.

GOV: Government Owned Vehicle. What military drive.

LES: Leave Earnings Statement. Military pay stub.

R&R: Rest and Recuperation. This is usually about two weeks and is taken during a deployment.

TDY: Temporary Duty. This is no longer than six months. Anything longer than six months requires a PCS move.

MTF: Military Treatment Facility. Where you go for medical appointments.

MPs: Military Police.

Duty Station: Where you work and sometimes live.

Installation: Where you work and sometimes live.

Garrison: Where you work and sometimes live.

Commissary: Military only grocery store. MUCH cheaper.

Post Exchange: Similar to a Khols.

Class 6: Similar to a convenience store and it sells booze.

ITR: Information, Tickets and Reservations. You can book lots of trips and excursions through them, usually at a discounted rate.

Sh*t Bag- A useless or lazy Soldier.

Down range: Refers to being deployed.

Enlisted Ranks:

Officer Ranks: