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lawmen

noun

plural of lawman
as in policemen
a member of a force charged with law enforcement at the local level as the rural county's chief lawman, the sheriff has to patrol a vast area with only minimal manpower

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of lawmen The moral decay of Karensville might as well be Charlottesville and the epithet-spewing McLeoud behaves too much like myriad red-state lawmen for comfort. — Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026 As the lawmen avoided the beam of light and approached the car, the suspects were able to get inside and lock the doors. — Dave Duffey, Outdoor Life, 26 Mar. 2026 That church would become a topic of scrutiny and sensationalism by regional lawmen and news outlets alike throughout much of 1912. — Lauren Nicole Henley, The Conversation, 17 Feb. 2026 Who was this irritant who had eluded the most sophisticated lawmen in the country, thanks to the triviality of his crimes? — David Grann, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2025 Cinematic lawmen like Little Bill in Unforgiven and Wyatt Earp in My Darling Clementine—films that inspired Eddington—commanded their towns with a near iron will. — Robert Daniels, Time, 10 Oct. 2025 Kris Kristofferson and Treat Williams as lawmen whose desert discovery leads down a path to information about the Kennedy assassination. — Rich Heldenfels, Boston Herald, 31 Aug. 2025 Kirsh’s shock of white hair and dry, sardonic air give Olyphant refreshing distance from the upright lawmen he’s known for. — Alison Herman, Variety, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lawmen
  1. policemen
  2. cops
  3. officers
  4. constables
  5. sheriffs
Noun
  • There was a group of them, policemen, and then there was a priest with them.
    — Dana Taylor, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2026
  • The head-on crash that killed two policemen and five joyriders in Middlesbrough in August, and its aftermath, is the latest.
    — The Week UK, TheWeek, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of policemen
Noun
  • Both cops and the wounded woman were taken to a local hospital in stable condition and all three have since been released.
    — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 12 Sep. 2026
  • As the chasing cops weave around commuters and a school bus, dash cam video shows Trooper Major pulling up behind the truck and ramming it in the far-right breakdown lane.
    — Brittany Wallman, Miami Herald, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of cops
Noun
  • At least seven armed gunmen also attempted to enter the police compound and exchanged fire with officers.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Sep. 2026
  • New York State has agreed to pay a $24 million settlement to the family of Robert Brooks, who was beaten to death by Department of Corrections officers while in custody at an upstate prison, state officials said.
    — Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of officers
Noun
  • The woman was able to flee the scene and located deputy constables.
    — Adam England, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026
  • Troopers and Beacon Falls constables responded to the home and detained Drozdowski, state police said.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 6 May 2026
Definition of constables
Noun
  • The author argues that sheriffs should not have independent authority over ballots and election procedures, and calls for the state legislature to clarify sheriff powers by amending the constitution to make sheriffs appointed rather than elected, similar to police chiefs.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 31 Mar. 2026
  • Those sheriffs were featured in a recent Courier Journal investigation that found that one in six Kentucky counties has had a sheriff criminally charged or convicted since 2010.
    — Josh Wood, Louisville Courier Journal, 26 Sep. 2025
Definition of sheriffs

Browse Nearby Words

lawman
lawmen
lawn
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Cite this Entry

“Lawmen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lawmen. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

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