gendarme

noun

gen·​darme ˈzhän-ˌdärm 

also ˈjän-

1

: a member of a body of soldiers especially in France serving as an armed police force for the maintenance of public order

2

: police officer

Synonyms of gendarme

• policeman
• officer
• cop
• constable

Examples of gendarme in a Sentence

the senator reiterated his conviction that it is not the role of the United States to be a kind of global gendarme

Recent Examples on the Web

Sebastien Salom-Gomis | Afp | Getty Images Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez has said 70,000 police and gendarmes — a military police force — will be deployed in efforts to quell any outbreaks of violence. — Chloe Taylor, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2026

On November 3, 40 gendarmes searched two apartments and found the works in the process. — Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 5 Nov. 2026

French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said some 70,000 police officers and gendarmes would be deployed, along with helicopters, armored vehicles and water cannons. — Elitsa Gadeva, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026

More than 500 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters were injured, according to Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez. — Bradford Betz, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

French, from Middle French, back-formation from gensdarmes, plural of gent d'armes, literally, armed people

First Known Use

1793, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for gendarme

• alarm
• disarm
• forearm
• nonfarm
• rearm
• arm
• charm
• farm
• harm
• firearm
• underarm

Kids Definition

gendarme

noun

gen·​darme ˈzhän-ˌdärm 

also ˈjän-

: a member of a police force especially in France

Etymology

from French gendarme "policeman," derived as a singular form from earlier gensdarmes, gent d'armes, literally, "armed people"