Description of the 'Gefreiter' as 'Corporal' is quite common albeit not exactly correct. The discussed controversy largely stems from the fact that the military ranks in different branches of service, not to mention armed forces in different countries, especially in different time periods, do not necessarily match perfectly, even if they have the same name, as the military customs and organization practices varied over time.

Gefreiter was a most senior military rank of the enlisted corps in various German-speaking armies (and was later adopted by other armed forces, e.g. in Russia and later USSR) and usually was awarded to the enlisted men who gained some military experience and could have act as a form of guides for the new recruits, showing them the ropes of military service. The term itself literally means 'a relieved man', as Gefreiters were usually relieved of some simplest chores usually delegated to the youngest recruits, such as cleaning, carrying supplies or standing guard. In addition, quick promotion to the rank of Gefreiter was par of the course for the soldiers possessing some skills that could have been used by the officers of the unit in general or simply delegated for specific tasks, so that they could not take part in the aforementioned common chores and always be available. This usually extended to drivers, couriers, clerks, observers or signalmen. In 1914, during the First Battle of Ypres, Adolf Hitler was a runner attached to the regimental staff of the 16th Royal Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment and such specialist position usually carried a promotion to the Gefreiter rank.

It should be noted however, that when the military function is considered, the German rank of Gefreiter does not really map well to the British Lance Corporal or Corporal in other armies. In general, corporals, as most junior non-commissioned officers are tasked with the command of smallest units or sub-units. For example, in British army, Corporals lead squads, with Lance corporals being their second in command and thus their function might be similar to that of sergeants in other armies. This function does not map well to the Gefreiters in German army that were not tasked with command, which was the prerogative of the NCOs and officers from the rank of Unterofficer up (the rank of Korporal is scheduled to be introduced in Bundeswehr as one below Unteroffizer in 2021). This more or less corresponds to the division between the Specialist and Corporal ranks in US Army that share the same paygrade (E-4) but the latter is usually awarded to soldiers who passed the the Basic Leadership Course and actually have few soldiers under their command.

So, in essence, Gefreiters belonged to the enlisted corps and not NCOs, thus making this rank much similar to the PV2 or Private 1st Class (NATO equivalent OR-2) rather than a Corporal (NATO equivalent OR-3). Corporal, i.e. the most junior rank of the younger officer corps was generally an equivalent to Imperial German Unteroffizer, although in artillery and Jäger units such position was sometimes given to Obergefreiter (lit. Senior Private 1st Class) or Oberjäger respectively. Given that Adolf Hitler was a runner and thus filled a specialized role requiring additional skills (especially orientation and observation), one might argue that in reference to US Army, his position was closest to that of Specialist (E-4).