combat engineer

plural combat engineers

1. governmentA soldier employed to carry out engineering tasks in support of land forces during combat operations, facilitating the mobility of friendly forces while impeding that of the enemy.

   With him were 60,000 combat engineers for multiple bridgings of the river, and hundreds of thousands of tons of supplies, landing craft, and amphibious vehicles.

   2007, Stanley Weintraub, 15 Stars: Eisenhower, MacArthur, Marshall, page 325

   Synonyms: field engineer, pioneer, sapper