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

Did you know?

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

Starting in late 1948, government and right-wing paramilitary forces violently suppressed a left-wing insurgency on Jeju Island. —Robert Rubsam, Vulture, 22 Jan. 2025

The multinational banana producer Chiquita Brands was found liable in 2024 for killings by a Colombian right-wing paramilitary group that was designated as a terrorist organization. —Maria Abi-Habib, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2025

In 1999, President Bill Clinton commuted sentences for 16 members of FALN, a Puerto Rican paramilitary group that set off 120 bombing attacks in the United States. —Ron Faucheux, Orlando Sentinel, 19 Jan. 2025

At that time, Kruger’s poaching problem had gotten so out of hand that SANParks brought in a former South African Army General to transform the ranger corps into a paramilitary unit. —Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 16 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1935, in the meaning defined above