English · Idiom Historical

to get one's second pip

Preserved but no longer current.

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

To be promoted from second to first lieutenant. These army ranks are marked by "pips" on the shoulder- straps.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

được thăng cấp từ trung úy thứ hai lên thứ nhất

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

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.

Topics: Historical slang (1800s)

Common questions

What does “to get one's second pip” mean?

To be promoted from second to first lieutenant. These army ranks are marked by "pips" on the shoulder- straps.

Is “to get one's second pip” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

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