commando

noun

com·​man·​do kə-ˈman-(ˌ)dō 

plural commandos or commandoes

1

South Africa

a

: a military unit or command of the Boers

b

: a raiding expedition

2

a

: a military unit trained and organized as shock troops especially for hit-and-run raids into enemy territory

b

: a member of such a unit

Phrases

go commando

slang : to wear no underwear

Examples of commando in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Part of the 11th Army Corps is a 10,000-strong commando division that is trained to parachute into or penetrate enemy territory and carry out assassinations, infrastructure damage and sabotage, according to Madden. —Yoonjung Seo, CNN, 17 Dec. 2024

Israeli commando units have captured high-value assets in Lebanon and Syria. —Shalom Lipner, Foreign Affairs, 25 Nov. 2024

Special operations forces in surveys done in 2015 and more recently, said women did not have the physical or mental strength to serve in elite commando units and doing so could hurt the units’ effectiveness and lower the standards. —Lolita C. Baldor, Los Angeles Times, 20 Nov. 2024

Israeli commando units have sneaked across the border into Lebanon in recent days to gather intelligence about Hezbollah’s positions, tunnels, and military infrastructure, according to the New York Times. —Mike Brest, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 30 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Afrikaans kommando, from Dutch commando command, from Spanish comando, from comandar to command, from Late Latin commandare

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

commando

noun

com·​man·​do kə-ˈman-dō 

plural commandos or commandoes

1

: a military unit trained and organized for surprise raids

2

: a member of a commando