standing army

noun

: a permanent army of paid soldiers

Examples of standing army in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

What's more, the militias were renamed the National Guard and unconstitutionally transformed from a check on federal power to a second federal standing army. —

Nina Turner, Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2024 During the Cold War, the Soviet Union built one of the largest standing armies in the world, twice the size of the U.S. military. —

Sarah A. Topol, New York Times, 20 Sep. 2024 On the other hand, the Democratic-Republicans’ vision for the nation was based on the yeoman farmer with limited federal government and no standing army. —

Lindsay M. Chervinsky / Made By History, TIME, 19 Sep. 2024 Unlike large standing armies, drones that are being held in reserve do not take up a lot of space, do not need to be fed, and are not drawing salaries. —

Lorenz Meier, TIME, 13 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for standing army

Word History

First Known Use

1603, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of standing army was in 1603

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Standing army.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/standing%20army. Accessed 15 Nov. 2024.

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