AA |
anti-aircraft |
AA & QMG |
Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster-General |
A/Q |
|
Ack |
Acknowledge |
ACV |
Armoured Command Vehicle |
ADC |
aide-de-camp |
Adm, Admin |
Administration |
ADMS |
Assistant Director of Medical Services |
ADOS |
Assistant Director of Ordnance Services |
ADS |
Advanced Dressing Station |
Adv |
advance(d) |
adv |
|
A Echelon |
Transport usually taken into battle |
AFV |
Armoured Fighting Vehicle (tank or armoured car) |
AG |
Adjutant-General |
AGRA |
Army Group
Royal Artillery |
AIF |
Australian Imperial Force
|
Air Support Control |
Combined Army-
RAF organisation to bring air support to bear on ground operations |
Alam |
Cairn; isolated hillock (
Alamein, twin cairns) |
ALG |
Advanced Landing Ground |
amn |
ammunition |
AOC-in-C |
Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief |
AP |
Armour-piercing |
armd |
armoured |
armd Cs |
armoured cars |
armoured brigade |
formation of fast cruiser tanks, etc. |
army tank brigade |
formation of slow infantry tanks, etc. |
Arty |
artillery |
ASC |
Army Service Corps |
A tk |
anti-tank |
A/Tk |
|
a-tk |
|
A-Tk |
|
Aust |
Australian |
B24 |
Liberator bomber (US) |
B25 |
Mitchell bomber (US) |
Bab |
a pass |
Barrage |
a line of artillery fire |
Bays, The |
The Queen's Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards)
|
Bde |
Brigade (British or Allied formation, normally of three infantry battalions, or tank regiments or battalions) |
B Ech(elon) |
Transport sometimes temporarily dispensed with in battle |
BERESFORD |
Code-name for Eighth Army operation on 3–4 Sep 1942 against the flank of Rommel's advance on
Alam Halfa |
Bersaglieri |
Italian motorised infantry, organised in regiments each of two or three battalions |
BGS |
Brigadier, General Staff (chief staff officer at Corps or Army) |
Bir |
well or cistern (pl.
Abiar) |
bivouac (tent) |
Small portable tent, a ‘pup-tent’ |
Blenheim
|
British twin-engined bomber |
BM |
Brigade Major (chief staff officer at Brigade) |
Bn |
Battalion (a unit of tanks or reconnaissance troops, normally three squadrons plus HQ; or infantry, four rifle companies plus HQ company; or machine-gunners, four companies of Vickers guns) |
Bn |
Battalion (German unit of tanks, anti-tank or anti-aircraft guns, engineers, infantry, machine-gunners, or motor-cyclists) (Italian organisation was similar) |
Bofors |
Automatic 40-millimetre light anti-aircraft gun of Swedish design |
Box |
All-round defensive position for battalion, brigade or division in static operations |
Breda
|
Italian heavy machine-gun or light automatic cannon |
Bren |
standard British light machine-gun |
”-carrier |
light armoured tracked vehicle intended to carry Bren guns, but also used for reconnaissance, carrying ammunition or wounded under fire, etc. |
Brigs |
Brigadiers |
BTE |
British Troops in
Egypt (command excluding Eighth Army) |
Bty |
battery (two, three or four troops of guns) |
Buffs |
The Royal East Kent Regiment |
BULIMBA |
Code-name for diversionary attack by 9 Aust Div, 1 Sep 1942 |
Burg |
a hill |
carrier (Universal) |
See
Bren- |
Cav |
Cavalry (light tanks, armoured cars, carriers) |
CB |
Companion of the Order of the Bath; counter-battery (fire), locating and silencing of hostile guns |
CBE |
Commander of the Order of the British Empire |
CCS |
Casualty Clearing Station |
CE |
Chief Engineer (Corps or Army) |
CGS |
Chief of the General Staff
|
Churchill (tank) |
British infantry support tank, experimental in 1942 |
CIGS |
Chief of the Imperial General Staff |
C-in-C |
Commander-in-Chief |
CLY |
County of London Yeomanry |
CMG |
Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George |
CO |
Commanding Officer (usually of a unit) |
Col |
Colonel |
Comando Supremo |
Italian Supreme Command (counterpart of
OKW) |
Comd |
Commander; Commanding |
comn |
communication(s) |
concentration |
a pattern of artillery fire |
Coy |
Company |
CRA |
Commander,
Royal Artillery (of division) |
CRASC |
Commander, Royal Army Service Corps (of division)—later in 2 NZ Division called CNZASC |
CRE |
Commander,
Royal Engineers (of division) |
CRUSADER |
Code-name for British offensive resulting in relief of
Tobruk, November 1941 |
Crusader |
British Cruiser tank, with 2-pdr gun (later 6-pdr) |
CSM |
Company Sergeant-Major |
CSO |
Chief Signal Officer |
DAK |
Deutsches Afrikakorps (German
Africa Corps) |
DCM |
Distinguished Conduct Medal |
Deir |
Depression |
det(s) |
detachment(s) |
Div |
Division, Divisional |
Div Arty |
Divisional Artillery (Headquarters, often HQ NZA) |
Div Cav |
Divisional Cavalry |
Div Workshops |
Ordnance unit for maintaining guns, vehicles and other equipment |
DLI |
Durham Light Infantry
|
DSO |
Distinguished Service Order |
Ech |
First, Second, Third, three main contingents of
2 NZEF in order of embarkation, chiefly comprising 4, 5, and 6 Brigades respectively (see also
A Echelon, B Echelon) |
Echelon |
|
ED |
Efficiency Decoration |
EM |
Efficiency Medal |
en portée |
(of 2-pdr gun) carried on special lorry |
fd |
field |
Fd Amb |
Field Ambulance (medical unit) |
Fd Coy |
Field Company (of engineers) |
FDL(s) |
Forward defended locality (localities) |
Fd Pk Coy |
Field Park Company (of engineers) |
Fd Regt |
Field Regiment (unit of artillery) |
FF |
Free French (changed to Fighting French, Oct 1942) |
flail tank |
See
Scorpion |
FMC |
Field Maintenance Centre
|
FSD |
Forward Supply Depot |
fwd |
forward |
GAF Brigade |
German Air Force Brigade |
G Branch (Office) |
Staff of division or higher formation or command dealing with operations |
‘G’ staff |
|
GCMG |
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St. Michael and St. George |
Gebel |
Hill or high ground |
GHQ |
General Headquarters |
Gk |
Greek |
GMDS |
German Military Documents Section,
Washington |
GOC (-in-C) |
General Officer Commanding (-in-Chief) |
Gp |
Group (Battalion or Brigade) force of all arms |
Grant |
American heavy tank with 75-mm. gun |
Greys |
The Royal Scots Greys |
GSO (I, II, III) |
General Staff Officer (Class 1, 2, 3) |
GYMNAST |
See
TORCH |
H |
Hussars |
51 (H) Div |
51 (Highland) Division |
Half-track |
Vehicle with wheels in front, tank-like tracks in rear |
He. |
German Heinkel bomber |
HE |
high explosive |
HMG |
heavy machine-gun |
Honey |
nickname for General Stuart tank (American M3) |
HQ |
headquarters |
hrs |
hours |
hy |
heavy |
I |
Intelligence (of enemy) |
Int |
Intelligence (of enemy) |
2 i/c |
Second-in-command |
incl |
inclusive; including |
Ind |
Indian |
inf |
infantry |
IO |
Intelligence Officer |
Ju86 |
German stratospheric reconnaissance aircraft |
Ju87 |
German Stuka dive-bomber |
Ju88 |
German medium bomber |
KBE |
Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire |
KCB |
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath |
KDG |
King's Dragoon Guards (a reconnaissance unit) |
K |
kilometre; e.g., K23, a distance sign on road or railway |
kilo |
|
km |
|
KRRC |
The King's Royal Rifle Corps
|
LAA |
light anti-aircraft |
laager |
defensive disposition of unit or formation halted in mobile operations, open order by day and close order by night |
LAD |
Light Aid Detachment (Ordnance establishment for repairing guns, transport, etc.) |
LG |
Landing Ground |
LIGHTFOOT |
Code-name for Eighth Army attack at
Alamein, 23 Oct 1942 |
line (transport) |
|
1st |
unit |
2nd |
divisional (carrying between FMC and division) |
3rd |
rear (carrying between railhead and FMC) |
LMG |
light machine-gun |
LO |
Liaison Officer |
LOB |
Left out of battle |
L of C |
Line(s) of communication |
LRDG |
Long Range Desert Group
|
Lt |
Lieutenant; light |
2 Lt |
Second-Lieutenant |
Luftwaffe
|
German Air Force
|
M13 |
Italian medium tank |
Maaten |
shallow wells |
MANHOOD |
Code-name for Eighth Army attack on 27 July 1942 |
Mark (I, II, etc.) |
designation of production type, especially of tanks |
Marsa, mersa |
port, anchorage |
Matilda |
British infantry support tank |
MBE |
Member of the Order of the British Empire |
MC |
Military Cross; motor-cycle |
MC 202 |
Macchi C 202, Italian fighter aircraft |
MDS |
Main Dressing Station |
ME(F) |
Middle East (Forces) |
Me109 |
single-engined Messerschmitt (German) fighter |
Me110 |
twin-engined long-range fighter or fighter-bomber |
Med |
Medium |
(M)MG |
(Medium) machine-gun |
m.g. |
(Medium) machine-gun |
m.i.d. |
Mentioned in Despatches |
Mk |
See
Mark |
MM |
Military Medal |
mm. |
millimetre, as in 88-mm. gun |
MO |
Medical Officer |
Mot |
motorised |
m.p.g. |
miles per gallon |
m.p.h. |
miles per hour (actual rate) |
MT |
mechanical transport |
‘Murder’ |
massed artillery fire on a single target |
NAAFI
|
Navy, Army, Air Force Institute(s) |
Naqb |
ascent, pass
|
NCO |
non-commissioned officer |
n.c.o. |
non-commissioned officer |
Notts Yeo |
Nottinghamshire Yeomanry
|
50 (N) Div |
50 (Northumbrian) Division |
NZA |
New Zealand Artillery |
NZASC |
New Zealand Army Service Corps |
NZE |
New Zealand Engineers |
NZEF |
New Zealand Expeditionary Force |
NZLO |
New Zealand Liaison Officer |
NZMC
|
New Zealand Medical Corps |
NZOC |
New Zealand Ordnance Corps |
NZR |
New Zealand Railways |
OBE |
Officer of the Order of the British Empire |
OC |
Officer Commanding (squadron, battery, company) |
offrs |
officers |
OKH |
Oberkommando des Heeres (High Command of the German Army) |
OKL |
Oberkommando der
Luftwaffe (High Command of the
German Air Force) |
OKM |
Oberkommando der Kriegsmarine (High Command of the German Navy) |
OKW |
Oberkommando der
Wehrmacht (Supreme Command of the German Armed Forces, roughly equivalent to the War Office) |
OP |
Observation Post |
Ops |
Operations; staff branch dealing with same |
ORs |
other ranks (not officers) |
P40 |
Kittyhawk fighter aircraft (US) |
PA |
Personal Assistant (to GOC) |
Panzer |
German tank; armoured unit or formation |
Pz |
German tank; armoured unit or formation |
Panzergruppe Afrika |
Panzer Group Africa |
Pz Gp Africa |
Panzer Group Africa |
PEDESTAL |
Code-name for
Malta convoy, August 1942 |
pl |
platoon |
Point |
Height marked on map, usually in metres above sea level |
Pt |
Height marked on map, usually in metres above sea level |
POL |
Petrol, oil and lubricants |
portée |
See
en portée |
pr |
pounder |
provost |
military police |
PW |
prisoner(s) of war |
p.w. |
prisoner(s) of war |
Qaret |
low hill |
QM(G) |
Quartermaster(-General) |
quad |
lorry for towing British field gun or anti-tank 18-pdr |
Queen's, The |
The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surreys) |
RA |
Royal Artillery
|
RAC |
Royal Armoured Corps
|
RAMC |
Royal Army Medical Corps |
RAP |
Regimental Aid Post (unit medical establishment) |
Raqabet |
dry watercourse |
Ras, rass |
cape, headland, summit |
RASC |
Royal Army Service Corps |
rd |
road, round |
RE |
Royal Engineers
|
recce |
reconnaissance; reconnoitre |
Regt |
Regiment (unit of tanks, reconnaissance troops, or artillery; in British Army also groups of tank, artillery or infantry units, e.g., RTR, RHA, Black Watch) |
Regt |
Regiment (enemy) (formation of armoured troops or infantry, roughly equivalent to ‘brigade’; also unit of field or medium artillery) |
Reinforcements (4th, 5th, etc.) |
Successive contingents of
2 NZEF after
Third Echelon |
Res |
reserve |
RHA |
Royal Horse Artillery (motorised, usually supporting armoured troops) |
RHQ |
Regimental Headquarters |
RMO |
Regimental Medical Officer (of a unit) |
RMT |
Reserve Mechanical Transport |
Res MT |
Reserve Mechanical Transport |
Royals |
The Royal Dragoons (reconnaissance unit) |
Royal West Kents
|
The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment |
rpt |
repeat (message) |
RSM |
Regimental Sergeant-Major (senior NCO of unit) |
R/T |
radio-telephony (wireless transmission of speech) |
RTR |
The Royal Tank Regiment |
R Tks |
The Royal Tank Regiment |
runner |
a tank in working order |
SA |
South African |
SA |
small arms |
s.a. |
small arms |
sangar |
rocks piled up for protection in lieu of slit trench where ground was too hard to dig |
Sanyet |
deep well |
SC |
Staff Captain (administrative staff officer at Brigade) |
Scorpion |
tank fitted with a flail device for clearing a path through a minefield |
sec |
section (2-3 guns; detachment of Signals; third of infantry platoon; third of ASC company, etc.) |
Sherman |
American heavy tank with 75-mm. gun |
Sidi |
saint or marabout |
Sigs |
Signals (responsible for R/T, W/T, DR, telephone and other communications) |
sitrep |
situation report |
slit trench |
one- or two-man trench; ‘foxhole’ |
‘S’ mine |
German anti-personnel mine
|
SP |
self-propelled (gun); Starting Point |
Sp. |
Special |
spandau |
nickname for standard German light and medium machine-gun |
sqn |
squadron (of tanks, reconnaissance troops, or aircraft) |
ST |
Starting Time |
Staffs Yeo |
Staffordshire Yeomanry
|
‘Stonk’ |
A quick defensive artillery concentration according to a prearranged pattern |
Stuart (General) |
American M3 light cruiser tank; ‘Honey’ tank |
Stuka |
Junkers 87 dive-bomber |
‘Sunshields’ |
Code-name for dummy vehicles, made from canvas, used for camouflage purposes |
SUPERCHARGE |
Code-name for operation to break through at
Alamein |
Superlibia |
Italian Command in North Africa |
Svy |
Survey |
‘Swordfish’ area |
Training area behind the
Alamein line, near
Alam Shaltut |
Tac Army |
Tactical Headquarters, Eighth Army |
Tac HQ |
Tactical Headquarters |
tank-buster |
Hurricane aircraft with anti-tank cannon |
Tell |
high ground, small hill |
temp |
temporary |
tentacle |
wireless detachment, usually of Air Support Control |
Tk |
tank |
Tommy gun |
Thompson sub-machine gun |
TORCH |
Code-name for Anglo-American landings in French North Africa, November 1942 |
tower |
a towing vehicle. See
quad |
tp(s) |
troop(s); part of squadron of tanks or reconnaissance troops (usually four tanks or armoured cars); part of battery (4–6 guns) |
Trg |
Training |
Trig |
See
Point |
Trigh |
track |
TWELVEBORE |
Eighth Army's code-name giving warning of Rommel's offensive, 30 Aug 1942 |
U-boat |
German submarine |
UDF |
Union Defence Force (of South Africa) |
Umm |
Mother of (in place names) |
USAAF
|
United States Army Air Force |
Valentine |
British infantry support tank |
VC |
Victoria Cross |
VD |
Volunteer Officers' Decoration |
wadi |
watercourse, usually dry |
wastage |
reduction of manpower |
WD |
Western Desert
|
WDF |
Western Desert Force
|
WE, war establishment |
authorised full allotment (of men, weapons, etc.) |
Wehrmacht
|
German Armed Forces |
West Surreys |
The Queen's Royal Regiment |
West Yorks |
The West Yorkshire Regiment |
Wilts |
Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry
|
WT |
Wireless telegraphy |
Zero (hour) |
time given for an operation to start |
zeroing |
checking gun sights, etc., for accuracy |