Oak leaf cluster An oak leaf cluster is a miniature metal device worn by members of the seven uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons issued by the United States Army , Air Force , and Department of Defense to denote subsequent decorations and awards . It is bronze or silver in appearance , formed as a twig of four oak leaves with three acorns on the stem . The bronze oak leaf cluster represents one additional award , while the silver oak leaf cluster is worn in lieu of five bronze oak leaf clusters . Wear and examples . Oak leaf clusters are worn with the stems of the leaves pointing to the wearer ’ s right . For medals , 13 / 32 inch oak leaf clusters are worn on the medal ' s suspension ribbon . If four oak leaf clusters are worn on the suspension ribbon , the fourth is placed above the middle one in the row of three . For service ribbon s , 5 / 16 inch oak leaf clusters are worn , with no more than four oak leaf clusters being worn side - by - side . If the number of authorized oak leaf clusters exceeds four , a second ribbon is authorized for wear and is worn after the first ribbon . The second ribbon counts as one additional award , after which more leaf clusters may be added to the second ribbon . If future awards reduce the number of oak leaf clusters worn on the first ribbon due to bronze oak leaf clusters being replaced by a silver oak leaf cluster , the second ribbon is removed and the appropriate number of devices is placed on the first ribbon . The sequence of bronze and silver oak leaf clusters for the first through twenty - first awards of an Army Commendation Medal would be as follows : Decorations and awards . When authorized , oak leaf clusters may be worn on United States Army , Air Force , and Department of Defense decorations and awards issued to the following seven uniformed services : the United States Army , Navy , Air Force , Marine Corps , Coast Guard , Public Health Service , and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Except for the Air Medal , unique decorations issued by the Army or Air Force , and those decorations and awards issued by the Department of Defense , the other uniformed services use 5 / 16 inch star s to indicate subsequent awards . A gold 5 / 16 inch star is equivalent to a bronze oak leaf cluster , while a silver 5 / 16 inch star is equivalent to a silver oak leaf cluster . While the Air Force uses oak leaf clusters for the Air Medal , since the Vietnam War the Army has used 3 / 16 inch bronze Arabic numeral s to denote subsequent awards , in which case the ribbon denotes the first award and numerals starting with the numeral " 2 " denote additional awards . Other nations . In other nations , oak leaf clusters are also used as symbols for various awards and decorations . In Germany , the German oak is the national tree of Germany , thus oak leaves are a prominent symbol on most German military orders . During World War II , the Knight ' s Cross of the German Iron Cross could be awarded with the additional distinction of oak leaves ( " mit Eichenlaub " ) . Of the 7 , 313 awards of the Knight ' s Cross , only 882 received oak leaves . After World War II , Iron Crosses awarded previously could be worn by the recipient if the swastika was replaced by oak leaves . The Bundeswehr awards the Cross of Honour for Bravery for extraordinary bravery . The Cross of Honour for Bravery differs from the Badge of Honour by an adornment in the shape of stylized double oak leaves . Furthermore , it was featured on the Pfennig in Germany and since the introduction of the euro in 2001 it is used on the obverse side of the German euro coinage . In earlier times , the Pour le Mérite , the highest military order in the Kingdom of Prussia , could also be awarded with oak leaves . A civil version of the order , for accomplishments in the arts and sciences , still exists in the Federal Republic of Germany . In Commonwealth countries , a bronze oak leaf signifies a Mention in Despatches , and is worn as a gallantry award in its own right , rather than to signify multiple instances of campaign service . The Commonwealth equivalent of a United States oak leaf cluster is a medal bar worn with a campaign medal .