What word means to serve in the military?

The word that means to serve in the military, on the USCIS reading vocabulary list, is Enlist. To enlist is to voluntarily join a branch of the armed forces. The U.S. military comprises six branches: the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Space Force (established in 2019), and Coast Guard. The Department of Defense oversees the first five branches; the Coast Guard is part of the Department of Homeland Security in peacetime and operates under the Department of the Navy in wartime.

The U.S. armed forces have been an all-volunteer force since 1973, when the draft was ended after the Vietnam War. Enlisted personnel sign a contract that typically commits them to a term of active service plus reserve obligations, with most initial active-duty enlistments running four to six years.

Basic eligibility includes being a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, being at least 17 years old (with parental consent under 18), holding a high school diploma or equivalent, passing the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB), passing a medical examination, and meeting moral character standards. Lawful permanent residents are eligible to enlist in most branches and have an expedited path to U.S. citizenship under sections 328 and 329 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, including the ability to apply for naturalization while serving without the usual residence requirements.

Although the military is all-volunteer, all male U.S. citizens and male lawful permanent residents aged 18 to 25 must register with the Selective Service System under federal law, which would administer a draft if Congress and the President reactivated conscription. On the reading test Enlist may appear in a sentence about military service or civic duty.