paramilitary

adjective

para·mil·i·tary ˌper-ə-ˈmi-lə-ˌter-ē

ˌpa-rə-

: of, relating to, being, or characteristic of a force formed on a military pattern especially as a potential auxiliary military force

a paramilitary border patrol

paramilitary training

paramilitary noun

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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

Government forces have been attacked by heavily armed paramilitary groups in several villages.

Recent Examples on the Web

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.

The Hezbollah campaign, part of a broader war that has killed thousands of people in Lebanon and displaced more than a million, defanged one of Israel’s greatest adversaries and dealt a blow to Iran’s regional strategy of arming and funding paramilitary groups bent on Israel’s destruction. —

Mark Mazzetti, New York Times, 29 Dec. 2024 Armed and Underground: Inside the Turbulent, Secret World of an American Militia By Joshua Kaplan Internal messages reveal how AP3, one of the largest U.S. militias, rose even as prosecutors pursued other paramilitary groups after the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol. 4. —

ProPublica, 26 Dec. 2024 Displaced people residing in the camp and aid groups including Doctors Without Borders (MSF) have blamed the constant shelling on the Rapid Support Forces or RSF, the Sudanese paramilitary group locked in a brutal civil war with Sudan's army since April 2023. —

Emmanuel Akinwotu, NPR, 21 Dec. 2024 According to an estimate by the American Enterprise Institute that rightly incorporates the paramilitary functions of China’s space program and coast guard, China spends $711 billion a year on its military. —

Mitch McConnell, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for paramilitary