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earn stripes

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earn your stripes

to do something to show that you deserve a particular rank or position She earned her stripes as a local reporter before becoming a foreign correspondent.

Etymology: based on the idea that soldiers wear stripes (strips of material sewn onto a uniform that show rank)

See also: earn, stripe

earn your stripes

to do something to show that you deserve a particular rank or position and have the skills needed for it She earned her stripes as a junior reporter before becoming education correspondent.

See earn brownie points, earn spurs

See also: earn, stripe