Medal of Honor
Preserved but no longer current.
A U.S.A. medal awarded by Congress to soldiers, sailors, and marines who have shown conspicuous gallantry in the face of the enemy and have risked their lives beyond any call that duty may have made upon their services.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Medal of Honor” mean?
A U.S.A. medal awarded by Congress to soldiers, sailors, and marines who have shown conspicuous gallantry in the face of the enemy and have risked their lives beyond any call that duty may have made upon their services.
Is “Medal of Honor” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.