special agent
37
3.5
- noun
- /ˈspɛʃəl ˈeɪdʒənt/
- US
:
agente especial
- Special Agent Clarice Starling, a ten-year veteran on the Bureau... began her career with an assignment... to interview lethal madman Hannibal Lecter.
I'm Special Agent Smith with the FBI and this is my colleague, Special Agent Jones.
- I'm Special Agent Smith with the FBI and this is my colleague, Special Agent Jones.
- And then he ends up getting chased by an off duty FBI special agent who hears the screams in his neighbor's house.
- That would be on the command of the of the person in charge of the president's detail, the special agent in charge, also known as the SAC.
Examples
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Special agent Doe was assigned to investigate the theft at the museum.
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The special agent in charge would like to make clear that Mr. Ferrie was brought in for questioning by the District Attorney of Orleans Parish, not by - the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
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Within weeks, a special agent of the Department of State paid a visit to this museum.
Academic text (2003) -
I am a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Fiction book (1999) -
I'm Jack McCready, special agent in charge of this investigation.
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The Secret Service has long valued the skills its special agents develop during their investigative assignments.
Blog text (13) -
Five special agents were in Benghazi at the time of the attack, Issa said.
Blog text (5) -
Special Agent Lawrence Twilley, FBI.
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Special Agent Benjamin O'Ryan, FBI.
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He's the special agent in charge of the FBI Anti-Terrorist Unit.
Synonyms
∞
2.8
A person who helps and represents someone in business, legal, or official matters
201
7.3
A person who works as a secret agent or detective
1
7.7
A person in the military or intelligence who carries out a secret task
Antonyms
How Senior
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is a straightforward adjective + noun composition: 'special' (having a particular or non-ordinary quality) modifies 'agent' (a person who acts on behalf of others), so the sense 'an agent with a particular/special role or mission' is directly inferable from the parts. This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words would generally understand the MWE (though fine legal nuances about limited authority may require context).
Etymology
The noun special agent comes from law and police use, where special meant 'for one particular job' and agent was a person who acted for someone else. Imagine someone sent on a single mission with power only for that job, and that picture explains why a special agent today has authority limited to a particular task.