Jump To:

• Special Forces
  Special Forces

  plural noun

  U.S. Army personnel trained to organize, instruct, supply, and supervise local forces engaged in guerrilla warfare and counterinsurgency operations, and to themselves conduct unconventional warfare.
• special forces
  special forces

  plural noun

  élite, highly trained military forces, specially selected to work on difficult missions

Special Forces

American  

plural noun

1. U.S. Army personnel trained to organize, instruct, supply, and supervise local forces engaged in guerrilla warfare and counterinsurgency operations, and to themselves conduct unconventional warfare.

---

special forces British  

plural noun

1. élite, highly trained military forces, specially selected to work on difficult missions

---

Example Sentences

Commandos for the National Guard Special Forces, or FERI, secured the training exercise area and rescued a "hostage" amid a haze of explosions, smoke, and rattling gunfire.

From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026

Van Dyke has been an active duty soldier in the US since 2008 and has been a master sergeant with the US Army Special Forces since 2023, according to the indictment.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026

Army Special Forces, made a series of bets on the Polymarket prediction market using his knowledge of what was called Operation Absolute Resolve, according to an indictment made by federal authorities.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 24, 2026

Special Forces entered Caracas and apprehended Maduro and his wife at their residence.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026

It was 1966, and Robert was a member of the elite Special Forces of the army, known as the Green Berets for their distinctive headgear.

From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge