rank and file
Preserved but no longer current.
Soldiers and non-Com- missioned officers as apart from commissioned officers; hence, the followers in or private members of a movement as apart from its leaders. Rank refers to men standing abreast, file to men standing behind each other.
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 “rank and file” mean?
Soldiers and non-Com- missioned officers as apart from commissioned officers; hence, the followers in or private members of a movement as apart from its leaders. Rank refers to men standing abreast, file to men standing behind each other.
Is “rank and file” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.