as in military
of or relating to a group that is not an official army but that operates and is organized like an army
Government forces have been attacked by heavily armed paramilitary groups in several villages. a paramilitary police force
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in guerilla
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of paramilitary
Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 10 Apr. 2025
The emergence of a cult-like religious community known as Scars and a paramilitary organization called the Wolves expand the show’s questions about the right foundational elements for a functioning society.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 7 Apr. 2025
People were killed after soldiers and paramilitary forces raided the neighborhood of Raboteau after a demonstration in support of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2025
By The New York Times General al-Burhan, who leads Sudan’s military, and Lt. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan, who leads the Rapid Support Forces were once allies, but went to war nearly two years ago over a dispute about a plan for the paramilitary troops to be absorbed by the military.
—Declan Walsh, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paramilitary
Adjective
London and Abu Dhabi, UAE CNN — Sudan has accused the United Arab Emirates at the United Nations’ top court of violating the Genocide Convention by supporting paramilitary forces in its Darfur region.
—Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 10 Apr. 2025
The emergence of a cult-like religious community known as Scars and a paramilitary organization called the Wolves expand the show’s questions about the right foundational elements for a functioning society.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 7 Apr. 2025
People were killed after soldiers and paramilitary forces raided the neighborhood of Raboteau after a demonstration in support of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2025
By The New York Times General al-Burhan, who leads Sudan’s military, and Lt. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan, who leads the Rapid Support Forces were once allies, but went to war nearly two years ago over a dispute about a plan for the paramilitary troops to be absorbed by the military.
—Declan Walsh, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paramilitary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for paramilitary
Adjective
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The singer is also seen in the video wearing a shirt featuring pieces of a keffiyeh, a traditional headdress worn in some parts of the Middle East and viewed largely as a symbol of Palestinian resistance to Israeli military occupation.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
25 Apr. 2025
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The original deadline to have a Real ID to allow Americans to travel domestically or enter federal facilities such as military bases or federal courthouses was May 2008.—
Karen Garcia,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The United States will deploy ship-sinking missiles to the Luzon Strait, a choke point for Chinese naval access to the Pacific Ocean, during a military exercise with the Philippines.—
Nicholas Creel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Apr. 2025
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In 1993, Williams was selected to become a naval test pilot and graduated from the course that same year.—
Sean Mowbray,
Discover Magazine,
18 Apr. 2025
Noun
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And, while Robert E. Lee might have declined to resort to guerrilla warfare, many of his lieutenants carried on a program of suppression by terror.—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
21 Apr. 2025
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Ceasefires had been announced this week by the People’s Defense Force, which is the armed wing of the shadow opposition National Unity Government, and the Three Brotherhood Alliance, a trio of ethnic minority guerrilla armies.—
David Rising,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The attack at Pahalgam on Tuesday was claimed by The Resistance Front (TRF), which is an offshoot of Pakistan's Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Apr. 2025
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For decades, several domestic militant groups, demanding either independence for Kashmir or for the area to become part of Pakistan, have fought Indian security forces, leaving tens of thousands killed in the violence.—
Sophia Saifi,
CNN Money,
24 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Just outside our car, soldiers beat down the door of a house and piled in.—
Antón Barba-Kay,
The Atlantic,
26 Apr. 2025
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Three Indian army officials said that Pakistani soldiers used small arms to fire at an Indian position in Kashmir late Thursday.—
Time,
Time,
25 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The moons, observed from 2019 to 2021 at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, were placed into subgroups within two categories of Saturnian irregulars; the Inuit group contains the Kiviuq and Siarnaq subgroups, and the Norse group contains the Phoebe, Mundilfari, and Kari subgroups.—
Jack Knudson,
Discover Magazine,
17 Mar. 2025
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As fighting raged in 1948 between Arab armies, Palestinian irregulars and Zionist forces, Mariam and her family fled to a Palestinian farming village, Umm al-Fahem.—
Isabel Kershner,
BostonGlobe.com,
22 July 2023
Noun
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Fans of horror, science fiction, fantasy, romance and young adult novels will feel right at home, surrounded by book covers illustrating warriors, dragons, monsters and magical lands.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
20 Apr. 2025
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Users can personalize the prompt by describing features, aesthetic or desired theme—such as space explorer, fantasy warrior or tech ninja.—
Raja Krishnamoorthi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Paramilitary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paramilitary. Accessed 1 May. 2025.
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