commando

[kuh-man-doh, -mahn-] /kəˈmæn doʊ, -ˈmɑn-/
noun, plural commandos, commandoes.
1.
  1. any of the specially trained Allied military units used for surprise, hit-and-run raids against Axis forces.
  2. a member of any of these units.
    Compare ranger (def 3).
2.
any military unit organized for operations similar to those of the commandos of World War II.
3.
a member of a military assault unit or team trained to operate quickly and aggressively in especially urgent, threatening situations, as against terrorists holding hostages.
Origin
1785-95; < Afrikaans kommando raid, raiding party, a unit of militia < Portuguese commando unit commanded, noun derivative of commandar to command
Examples from the web for commando
  • It is so easy to be a keyboard commando, as they say, and write whatever you want and not think of the repercussions.
  • His bowlegged waddle heightened the ridiculous effect of tight trousers tucked into boots in imitation of a commando uniform.
  • It was a precise commando raid made possible by intelligence, planning, and diplomacy.
British Dictionary definitions for commando

commando

/kəˈmɑːndəʊ/
noun (pl) -dos, -does
1.
  1. an amphibious military unit trained for raiding
  2. a member of such a unit
2.
the basic unit of the Royal Marine Corps
3.
(originally) an armed force raised by Boers during the Boer War
4.
(modifier) denoting or relating to a commando or force of commandos: a commando raid, a commando unit
adverb
5.
(informal) go commando, to wear no underpants
Word Origin
C19: from Afrikaans kommando, from Dutch commando command, from French commander to command
Word Origin and History for commando
n.

Afrikaans, "a troop under a commander," from Portuguese, literally "party commanded" (see command (v.)); in use c.1809 during the Peninsula campaign, then from 1834, in a South African sense, of military expeditions of the Boers against the natives; modern sense is from 1940 (originally shock troops to repel the threatened German invasion of England), first attested in writings of Winston Churchill, who could have picked it up during the Boer War. Phrase going commando "not wearing underwear" attested by 1996, U.S. slang, perhaps on notion of being ready for instant action.

Slang definitions & phrases for commando

commando

noun

A person who behaves roughly and overeagerly, esp in lovemaking

Related Terms

bedpan commando

[Students fr WWII Army; fr the Commandos, elite British shock troops of WWII]