Special Air Service
1
5.2
- proper noun
:
Servicio Aéreo Especial
- The British Special Air Service is known for its highly trained commandos who undertake covert missions.
- British Special Air Service
And, and he says, you know, SAS Special Air Service.
- And, and he says, you know, SAS Special Air Service.
Examples
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Sayeret Matkal is the Israeli version of the UK's Special Air Service or US Army's Delta Force.
Blog text (11) -
Most recently, SEAL Team Six carried out a successful hostage rescue in Afghanistan in a joint operation with the fabled British Special Air Service.
Blog text (28) -
- Colonel Rose? - Special Air Service.
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"You are the Special Air Service."
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The First Battalion was trained by the British Special Air Service in World War II, and they pride themselves now on being just as good.
Fiction book (1995) -
Special Air Service, sir.
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When it's written by a survival instructor for the famed British Special Air Service regiment, you can be sure that a book has been well and truly road-tested!
Blog text (12) -
During the crisis, members of the British Special Air Service were deployed to secure the area and rescue hostages.
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Many films portray operations carried out by the British Special Air Service, highlighting their exceptional skills in combat.
Synonyms
10
6.2
A small group of British soldiers trained to do secret attacks and rescue people
Surface Forms
Morphology
The parts 'special' (elite), 'air' (aviation/airborne), and 'service' (military branch) give a B1 learner a clear clue that this refers to a military unit associated with airborne or specialized operations, so the general idea is inferable from the words. However, it is a proper name for a specific British regiment with particular commando and clandestine roles that are not fully predictable from the constituents alone, so the transparency is partial.
Etymology
Special Air Service comes from World War II, when a small group of top soldiers were flown behind enemy lines to make secret raids; the word Air shows they arrived by plane and Special shows they did unusual, very risky work. That's why today the name means a top unit that carries out 'secret' and 'dangerous' missions.