Can a Marine answer this?

[Teufelhunden]

Most give cadences in a very understandable voice. Some don't, but we can read their minds so it doesn't matter. It's a Marine thing. We don't care if you don't understand. You don't need to. Move. Get back. Freeze. Get your nasty eyeballs off me.

ROFL!

"ZERO!" "Freeze recruit freeze!"

Ahh....the memories...

A Marine platoon with a good driver is something to be seen. The snap and pop and precision is unearthly. One wouldn't think that many men would be able to move in absolute unison.

As others have said, the commands start as intelligible for the recruits, but as the platoon gets better and the DI's can get into their groove, the commands get some flair and DI's try to show each other other up as they drive their platoon around Parris Island. Series Drill Competition doesn't just happen once--it's every day.

-Teuf

 

[Brian Williams]

Some of the commands have a "soft" sound to the word i.e. arm or march, so the person often puts a H or other Hard sound on that word to give a single gutteral or tone to the command

i.e. Right Face becomes RrrrrriiiGht (Ptlisitmb) Hace

i.e. Forward March Becomes FooooooorrrrrrrWard (Ptlisitmb) Harch


(Ptlisitmb) = Pause to let it sink in to mush brains

Also this gives a single tone to give the Soldier the reaction point.


When the command is started RrrrrIGht Pause, the Marine knows that he is to Pivot right on the next word.

All commands have a direction word(s) and a executer

Right shoulder-------Tells the Marine to get ready to put his rifle on his right shoulder

Arms--------- tells him to do it now.


Forward -------------March
Right step----------- March
To the rear ----------march
About ----------------Face
Right Shoulder -------arms
Port---------------------arms

 

[fix]

To this day, my wife makes fun of me by yelling "ZEROOOOOOOOO!!!" when she wants to get my attention.

 

[G1FAL]

She ever yell your last name at the top of her lungs? My friends wife used to do that when she'd be talking to him and he wasnt paying attention because we were watching a movie or playing video games or something.

We'd hear "blah blah blah, blahblahblahblah, blah......THOMAS!" That got our attention right quick.

Perfessr, excellent summary for the unenlightened. Anyone who doesnt understand should be able to read that and say "Oohhhhhhh, I get it NOW!"

Once you get out to the fleet, a lot of people dont bother using the "harch" or "harms" anymore. It just becomes a really loud "Hooh!" Hard to put the sound into written words. Use a soft U sound for the double O's.