spad

noun3

1. •
   (UK, informal) A government adviser, often in a political or media role.
2. •
   A nail one or two inches long, of iron, brass, tin, or tinner iron, with a hole through the flattened head, used to mark stations in underground surveying.
3. •
   Clipping of spadona/spadone.

   • No. 6.—Spadonas or spads, the first wing-quills of the chick, clipped at about six months. — 1911

noun3

1. •
   (UK) An instance of a signal passed at danger.

   • "We found there had been 60 SPADs in the Paddington throat in the previous eight years, and that was all to do with the layout becoming more complex because of the Heathrow Express. — 2026
2. •
   A relative measurement of the amount of chlorophyll present in a leaf, based on measurements with a SPAD meter produced by Minolta.
3. •
   Initialism of self-propelled air defense; a self-propelled anti-aircraft vehicle.

verb1

1. •
   (UK) To pass a signal at danger.

   • SPADing is best seen as a systemic problem requiring a systemic solution — 2005

phrase1

1. •
   (UK) Initialism of signal passed at danger.