Army Regulation 310-25, the “Dictionary of United States Army Terms,” is obsolete. The Army rescinded it, and its role has been split between two current sources: the DoD Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms for joint terminology and the Army Publishing Directorate’s ABCA database for Army-specific abbreviations, brevity codes, and acronyms. If you arrived looking for Army publishing rules instead of terminology, those now live in AR 25-30 and DA Pamphlet 25-40.
What AR 310-25 Was
AR 310-25 was a glossary that standardized terminology across the Army. It supplemented Joint Chiefs of Staff Publication 1 (JCS Pub 1) by defining Army-specific terms not covered at the joint level. The regulation was last revised in 1983 and has since been marked obsolete. Its publication number, like any rescinded Army publication number, is permanently retired and will not be reused.1U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. TRADOC Rescinded Pubs
Where Army Terminology Lives Now
Standardized military terminology sits in two places today.
At the joint level, the DoD Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms is the primary terminology source for all DoD components, including the Army. It standardizes language across the services to improve communication within DoD and with allied nations.2Joint Staff. DoD Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, June 2025 Most of what AR 310-25 once defined has been absorbed at this joint level or made redundant by it.
For Army-specific abbreviations, brevity codes, and acronyms, the authoritative source is the ABCA database hosted on the Army Publishing Directorate website.3Army Publishing Directorate. Army Regulation 25-30 That database is maintained on a live basis rather than as a periodically revised standalone regulation, which is one reason a static dictionary like AR 310-25 no longer made sense to keep.
If You Were Looking for Army Publishing Rules
Some readers arrive at AR 310-25 not for terminology but because they associate the old “310-series” with Army publications policy. The publishing lifecycle for Department of the Army documents is now governed by two current publications, and the split between them matters.
AR 25-30: The Policy
AR 25-30 sets the overarching policy for preparing, reviewing, approving, printing, distributing, and managing all DA publications and products. It covers authentication (the responsible HQDA principal official’s signature is what turns a draft into binding policy), the requirement that proponents review their publications on an 18-month cycle, and the rule that formal changes must be issued through change sheets or revised editions. Using electronic messages to alter administrative publications is explicitly prohibited.4Department of the Army. Army Regulation 25-30 – Information Management: Publishing and Printing
AR 25-30 also emphasizes version control on official publication websites so that personnel across the Active Army, Army National Guard, and U.S. Army Reserve are working from identical, current documents. The Army Publishing Directorate site at armypubs.army.mil is the single authoritative repository.
DA Pamphlet 25-40: The Procedures
DA Pam 25-40 translates the policy in AR 25-30 into operational instructions. It provides formats, reporting requirements, coordination guidelines, and the forms proponents use when creating or revising a publication.5Department of the Army. Department of the Army Pamphlet 25-40 – Army Publishing Program Procedures Administrative publications go through DA Form 260; doctrinal, training, technical, and equipment publications use DA Form 260-1.
All official administrative publications are subject to a 5-year currency criterion: within five years of publication, each document must be revised, certified as still current, or proposed for rescission.5Department of the Army. Department of the Army Pamphlet 25-40 – Army Publishing Program Procedures AR 310-25 is a clean example of the third option: rather than revise a fossilized 1983 dictionary or certify it current, the Army rescinded it and moved its content to sources that could actually be kept up to date.
The policy-versus-procedure split is intentional. A procedural change can be updated in DA Pam 25-40 without reopening the broader policy debate that a full AR revision would require.
How Terms and Publications Get Corrected
If you notice an error, an outdated procedure, or a needed improvement in a current Army publication, the formal channel is DA Form 2028, “Recommended Changes to Publications and Blank Forms.”6Army Publishing Directorate. DA Form 2028 – Recommended Changes to Publications and Blank Forms Submit it directly to the proponent agency listed on the publication’s cover page. For terminology specifically, changes flow through whichever proponent maintains the joint dictionary entry or the ABCA database record you are trying to fix, not through a standalone terminology regulation.
Finding Physical Copies
Distribution of current Army publications is primarily electronic, and many are available only in digital format.5Department of the Army. Department of the Army Pamphlet 25-40 – Army Publishing Program Procedures Because AR 310-25 is rescinded, it is not maintained in either the electronic repository or in print. Archived copies may circulate on third-party sites, but they carry no current authority.
For publications that are still active and available in print, the Army does not sell them directly. Titles listed in the Center of Military History catalog are sold to the public through the Government Publishing Office. You can check pricing and availability through the GPO Online Bookstore or by calling the GPO at (202) 512-1800.7U.S. Army Center of Military History. How to Order
The short version: cite the DoD Dictionary or the ABCA database for terminology, cite AR 25-30 and DA Pam 25-40 for publishing rules, and treat any reference to AR 310-25 in a current document as a signal that the reference itself needs updating.