Unofficial, Unabridged Dictionary For Marines - An attempt to capture the lexicon of the United States Marine Corps

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12345 6 7890 --NUMBERS-
0 Dark 30	Very early in the morning, pronounced oh, dark thirty. [Editor's Note: A lot of people have complained that a Marine would not call the numeral zero an "oh". That is possibly correct but it was pronounced in that unorthodox way when it was first used in the 1960s, possibly to add emphasis to the phrase.]
0311	Military Occupational Specialty of a rifleman. During World War II they were referred to as Oh Three Walkalot.
030SHIT	Pronounced "Oh three, Oh shit." Military Occupational Specialty of a junior infantry officer.
1369	(Vietnam) The MOS for an unlucky cocksucker.
1900	Homosexual. From the paragraph in the Separations Manual in the 1970s and 1980s that discusses homosexuals.
1-MC	The communication system aboard ship which allows orders and information to be passed immediately to all members of the crew. Usually a series of speakers throughout the entire ship.
1st Civ. Div.	1st Civilian Division. Civilian life. Before or after service in the Marine Corps. See COMCIVLANT.
1st Marine Division	Located at Camp Pendleton, CA it is a unit of the I Marine Expeditionary Force. It consists of the 1st, 5th, 7th and 11th Marine Regiments as well as supporting battalions of engineers, reconnaissance and amphibians. Commanded by a major general.
24/7	24 hours a day, seven days a week. Essentially always. Originally a reference to the perpetual card games on the fantail of a troop ship.
25-MC	The communication system aboard ship which allows orders and information to be passed immediately to specific compartments and preselected crew members.
2nd Marine Division	Located at Camp LeJeune, NC it is a unit of the II Marine Expeditionary Force. It consists of the 2nd, 6th, 8th and 10th Marine Regiments as well as supporting battalions of engineers, reconnaissance and amphibians as well as the Marine Corps' only Anti-Terrorism Battalion. Commanded by a major general.
3rd Marine Division	Located on the island of Okinawa, Japan it is a unit of the III Marine Expeditionary Force. It consists of the 3rd, 4th and 12th Marine Regiments as well as the 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion and a Combat Assault Battalion. Commanded by a major general.
45	.45 caliber weapon, usually an M1911A1.
4merMarine.com	The web site that hosts this dictionary and the compiled quotes. It is in reality a misnomer because, "Once a Marine, Always a Marine." In order to be a former Marine, one must have been first a Marine and then be either dead or incarcerated--the editor qualifies only on the first point. Unfortunately all of that was just too complicated to put into a domain name. This is a private project and actively seeks your assistance in the form of corrections and additions (I am in particular need of current words and phrases). I would also not turn down financial help in the cost of the domain and the server--as a retired, disabled GI who is still paying the Retired Military Disability TAX, money is always tight. This is also permission to link to this dictionary or to use this dictionary in any way that is legal. It is here to enjoy at no charge. You can also access this dictionary through OldCorps.org.
4-striper	A Navy or Coast Guard captain. The informal reference alludes to the four wide stripes worn on the cuffs of the blue uniform or the shoulder boards of captains.
5th Marine Division	During World War II the 5^th Marine Division was activated Nov. 11, 1943. It first saw action at Iwo Jima and was scheduled to participate in the invasion of the Japanese home islands. During Vietnam the 5^th Marine Division was re-activated with the 13^th, 26^th, 27^th and 24^th Marine Regiments and saw action at Khe Sahn. Jokingly called The National Guard due to the large population of 5^th Division Marines who got out and elected to serve in the National Guard.
72	A 72-hour absence from duty (liberty). Granted by commanding officers and not charged as leave.
782 Gear	Originally individual equipment owned by a unit and issued to a Marine while assigned to that unit. In boot camp that included a bucket, cleaning equipment, a poncho and a shelter half. The name is derived from the first three digits in the original Marine Corps Supply Classification for "Individual Equipment" (WWII and Korea). When the Federal Stock Number (FSN) system was created "Individual Equipment" fell into the 84XX group. Present use refers to the Load Bearing Vest, cartridge belt and the equipment attached to the belt as well as other field equipment. This history is often confused with the 734 Book that supply types used for the issue or turn-in of equipment, most warehousemen carried a 734 Book in their back pocket at all times.
86	To throw away or get rid of something. From the number of the form originally used to remove an item from a stock record.
8th and Eye (8^th and I)	Location of the Commandant's house, Marine Barracks, Washington, the Marine Corps Band and Drum and Bugle Corps as well as MCI. It is the ceremonial home of the Corps. It was the only public building not set afire when the British overran Washington, DC in the War of 1812, some say because of their stoic defense at Bladensburg Pike. From its address at 8th and I Streets SE, Washington, DC.
900 inch Range	A rifle range of approximately 25 yards used to zero weapons prior to qualification. When metric measure was incorporated into shooting this became a 25 meter range which some called the 1000 inch (actually 25.4 meters) and some misinterpreted as a 100 inch range. It is also called the pistol range.
90-Day Wonder	Unflattering term for an OCS graduate. Refers to the early practice of training commissioned officers in three months rather than the four years in the Naval Academy or the 4 year part-time training in ROTC. Also, 90-day blunder.
96	A 96-hour absence from duty (liberty). Granted by commanding officers for outstanding duty, unit successes or special holidays. Not charged as leave.
I Corps	(Vietnam) The northernmost of four corps areas in South Vietnam. I Corps was the province of the U. S. Marines while II, III and IV Corps were U. S. Army areas. Pronounced eye-corps.
I Marine Expeditionary Force	A Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) of the primarily composed of the 1st Marine Division, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, and 1st Marine Logistics Group. Among Marines, it is common to pronounce I MEF as "eye mef", "first mef", or "one mef". The 1st Marine Expeditionary Force is commanded by a Lieutenant General. (I stole this from Wikipedia so I left the links hot)
II Marine Expeditionary Force	A Marine Air-Ground Task Force consisting of ground, air and logistics forces capable of projecting offensive combat power ashore while sustaining itself in combat without external assistance for a period of 60 days. The II Marine Expeditionary Force is commanded by a Lieutenant General, who serves as Commander, US Marine Corps Forces, Atlantic, providing Marine fighting formations and units to European Command, Central Command and Southern Command. Consists mainly of the 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing and the 2nd Marine Logistics Group. (Also stolen from Wikopedia)
III Marine Expeditionary Force	A Marine Air-Ground Task Force that is forward-deployed and able to deploy rapidly and conduct operations across the spectrum from humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to amphibious assault and high intensity combat. III MEF maintains a forward presence in Japan and Asia to support the U.S. – Japan Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security and other alliance relationships of the United States. III MEF also conducts combined operations and training throughout the region in support of the National Security Strategy for Theater Security Cooperation. Its major units are the 3rd Marine Division, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, 3rd Marine Logistics Group and the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit. (Thanks again to Wikopedia)
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