Lieutenant

Lieutenant, lef-ten′ant, n. one representing or performing the work of another: an officer holding the place of another in his absence: a commissioned officer in the army next below a captain, or in the navy next below a commander and ranking with captain in the army: one holding a place next in rank to a superior, as in the compounds Lieuten′ant-col′onel, Lieuten′ant-gen′eral.—ns. Lieuten′ancy, Lieuten′antship, office or commission of a lieutenant: the body of lieutenants; Lieuten′ant-gov′ernor, in India, the name of the chief official in the provinces of Bengal, Behar, and Orissa, the North-western Provinces, and Oudh, Punjab, and Delhi; Lieuten′ant-gov′ernorship; Lieuten′antry (Shak.), lieutenancy; Lord′-lieuten′ant, the title of the viceroy of Ireland: in the British Isles, a permanent governor of a county appointed by the sovereign, usually a peer or other large land-owner, at the head of the magistracy and the chief executive authority; Sub′-lieuten′ant, formerly mate or passed midshipman, now the intermediate rank in the navy between midshipman and lieutenant.—Field-marshal lieutenant (see Field-marshal). [Fr.; cf. Lieu and Tenant.]