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  • 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
Synonyms

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

"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

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See Examples For:

"The chair remains committed to the welfare and safety of UK Special Forces personnel and witnesses who come forward to the inquiry."

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026

As HUR chief, Ivashchenko now also oversees the agency’s Timur Special Forces, an elite paramilitary organization with thousands of experienced soldiers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

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

Special Forces soldier pleaded not guilty Tuesday to using classified information to profit from prediction-market bets on the ouster of former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026

He was writing about Commando Special Forces, how popular and revered they were by civilians, but his dislike of their commander, a German mercenary, made his words stiff.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

The program opened with Norah O’Donnell’s exclusive interview with the Air Force officer who was shot down over Iran and rescued by special forces.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026

In January, the former leader of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, was seized by US special forces following a raid authorised by President Trump.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

In recent weeks US special forces have been carrying out joint operations with Ecuador's military.

From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026

Gen. Ahmed Abdullahi Sheikh, a former commander of Somali special forces.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026

They waded through burning waters and debris and lumbered ashore like nightmarish special forces.

From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia

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