paramilitary
adjective
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This term paramilitary can take in a wide range of organizations, but is usually applied to forces formed by a government. Groups opposing a government, even when organized along military lines, are more often referred to as guerrillas or insurgents. In countries with weak central governments (such as, in recent times, Afghanistan, Somalia, Iraq, or Congo), warlords may form their own paramilitary forces and take over all local police and military functions. Paramilitary often has a sinister sound today, since it's also applied to groups of off-duty military or police personnel who carry out illegal violence, often at night, with the quiet support of a government.
Examples of paramilitary in a Sentence
Greg Norman, FOXNews.com, 5 Dec. 2025
Security forces and paramilitary groups with links to the ruling establishment killed around 600 protesters and injured more than 20,000.
—Nabil Salih, Time, 4 Dec. 2025
Zero Units were paramilitary units manned by Afghans but backed by the CIA that also served in frontline fighting with CIA paramilitary officers.
—Collin Binkley, Arkansas Online, 29 Nov. 2025
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the powerful Sudanese paramilitary group that took over the city last month, is allegedly preventing people from leaving and stopping lifesaving supplies from coming in.
—Patrick Reevell, ABC News, 28 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paramilitary
Cite this Entry
“Paramilitary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paramilitary. Accessed 14 Dec. 2025.
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