What does PVT 2 PROV REGT stand for on a military headstone of World War I?

Answer 1

PVT 2 PROV REGT is actually two different things, not a single statement. "PVT" is short for the military rank of Private, and its inclusion on the headstone means that the soldier buried there was of Private rank at the time of his death. "2 PROV REGT" stands for 2nd Provisional Regiment, which is pretty broad term without any specific meaning as it is provided here (unless there were other words or letters following 2 PROV REGT that weren't included above). Regiments are simply large military units made up of two or more battalions totalling generally several thousand infantrymen, and the 'Provisional' simply means that it was a temporary unit that was formed in response to and disbanded with the resolution of the armed conflict at hand. The 2 does not offer any other clues either, as military units always carry numbers and these numbers are repeated widely. I hope this was some help, and if this wasn't quite what you were looking for I wish you good luck in your search.