Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - colonel

 noun  Etymology: alteration of coronel, from Middle French, modification of Old Italian colonnello column of soldiers, ~, diminutive of colonna column, from Latin columna  Date: 1567  1.  a. a commissioned officer in the army, air force, or marine corps ranking above a lieutenant ~ and below a brigadier general  b. lieutenant ~  2. a minor titular official of a state especially in southern or midland U.S. — used as an honorific title  • ~cy noun