active service

British

noun

military duty in an operational area

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Just 18 of its fleet of around 34 planes are in active service, according to officials.

From Barron's

Just 18 of its fleet of 34 planes are in active service, according to officials.

From Barron's

The plan is to expand the armed forces from the current 183,000 active service personnel to 260,000 by 2035 – plus 200,000 reservists.

From BBC

Washington has 11 aircraft carriers in active service, though one of them is scheduled to be decommissioned next year.

From The Wall Street Journal

SINGAPORE—China has put its largest and most sophisticated aircraft carrier into active service, boosting Beijing’s quest to create a formidable oceangoing navy that can challenge U.S. power in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023