陆军 (lù jūn) literally means 'land army' and refers to the branch of a nation’s armed forces responsible for ground-based military operations. The character 陆 (lù) means 'land' or 'mainland', while 军 (jūn) means 'army' or 'military force'. Together, they form a compound noun that specifically denotes the army as distinct from the navy (海军, hǎi jūn) and air force (空军, kōng jūn). This term is formal and institutional, commonly used in official contexts, news reports, military documents, and historical discussions.

In everyday speech, Chinese speakers may use 军队 (jūn duì, 'armed forces') as a more general term, but 陆军 is precise when referring only to ground troops — including infantry, armor, artillery, and engineers. It carries no colloquial or slang connotations and is never used metaphorically. The word appears frequently in compound terms like 陆军军官 (lù jūn guān yuán, 'army officer') or 陆军基地 (lù jūn jī dì, 'army base'). Its usage reflects China’s standardized military terminology, aligned with international conventions.