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
CNN Money, 19 Dec. 2025
As of December 2025, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces appear to be making gains, seizing a key oil field in central Sudan and forcing the retreat of the Sudanese Armed Forces in key cities in the country’s west.
—Christopher Tounsel, The Conversation, 18 Dec. 2025
Should paramilitary groups now form in response to the deteriorating security situation, there would be justifiable concerns that history may repeat itself.
—Kevin Whitaker, Foreign Affairs, 15 Dec. 2025
The Sudanese military blamed the attack on the Rapid Support Forces, RSF, a notorious paramilitary group at war with the army for control of the country for more than two years.
—CBS News, 13 Dec. 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 31 Dec. 2025.
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