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

Consider the 1976 Entebbe operation, the raid in Uganda by Israeli commandos—and the raid in which the prime minister’s elder brother, Lieutenant Colonel Yonatan Netanyahu, was killed: the operation succeeded in rescuing 102 of the 106 hostages held by Palestinian militants. —Amos Harel, Foreign Affairs, 29 Jan. 2025

Nearly a year before Israel said its troops crossed into Lebanon yesterday, small teams of Israeli commandos began operations targeting Hezbollah tunnels, weapons depots and other sites, the official said. —NBC News, 2 Oct. 2024

Part of this strategy is using precision strikes or commandos to take out senior North Korean officials and vital command centers before attacks can be carried out. —Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025

After a standoff between police and commandos, the Colombians retreated, allowing the inspector to get to the front door. —Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 26 Jan. 2025

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

Rhymes for commando

• afterglow
• akimbo
• albino
• aliquot
• allegro
• amigo
• apropos
• audio
• bungalow
• calico
• calypso
• cameo

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