corpsman

[ kawr-muhn, kohr- ]

noun

, plural corps·men.

1. U.S. Navy. an enlisted person working as a pharmacist or hospital assistant.
2. U.S. Army. an enlisted person in the Medical Corps who accompanies combat troops into battle to give first aid, carry off the wounded, etc.
3. a member of any corps, as of the Peace Corps.

corpsman

/ ˈkɔːmən /

noun

1. military a medical orderly or stretcher-bearer

Word History and Origins

Origin of corpsman¹

An Americanism dating back to 1940–45; corps + -man

Example Sentences

A Navy corpsman rushed to his aid and applied dressings.

From Washington Post

He was then sent to Europe, where he volunteered for kitchen duty but ended up as a corpsman and a mess sergeant in Gen. George S. Patton’s army; he would forage for food once the troops had outpaced their supplies.

From New York Times

During his campaign, Mr. Peña highlighted his time as a Navy hospital corpsman assigned to a Marine division in Okinawa, Japan.

From New York Times

In the foreground of the photo was the body of a prostrate young private with a corpsman tending to his chest wound.

From Washington Post

Strachan started his career in the Navy as a hospital corpsman but left on a medical discharge after a surgery gone awry.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• practitioner
• surgeon