A rehearsal is a structured pre-execution practice through which a command builds common understanding, tests a plan, and improves synchronization before action [@fustvance2022; @tmdtc2025].
The term matters because planning alone does not show whether a force actually shares the same assumptions about sequence, timing, and responsibility. A rehearsal exposes those assumptions while there is still time to correct them.
Rehearsal therefore sits between orders and execution. It is where a plan is translated into a form that subordinate leaders and staffs can actually use under pressure.