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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Dissimilar Words
as in guerilla
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of paramilitary
Christopher Bodeen, Chicago Tribune, 21 June 2025
That attack, which wounded about 100 U.S. troops, followed the U.S. drone strike that killed Gen. Qasem Soleimani, leader of Iran's elite Quds Force, part of the country's hardline paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corps.
—Tom Vanden Brook, USA Today, 19 June 2025
Beyond them is the Basij, a vast paramilitary network with hundreds of thousands of members embedded in every corner of Iranian society—in the streets, in neighborhoods, in schools, and mosques.
—Narges Bajoghli, Time, 19 June 2025
Members of Iranian paramilitary women forces (Basij) wear masks of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US elect Donald Trump with a red cross of it, during an anti-Israeli rally to show their solidarity with the Palestinian and Lebanese people, in Tehran, January 10, 2025.
—Jesus Mesa, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for paramilitary
Noun
Iran’s troops are divided between the regular armed forces, generally commissioned with guarding Iran’s borders and carrying out more conventional military tasks, and the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, including the elite Quds Force, the strategic missile command and the cyberforce.
—Christopher Bodeen, Chicago Tribune, 21 June 2025
That attack, which wounded about 100 U.S. troops, followed the U.S. drone strike that killed Gen. Qasem Soleimani, leader of Iran's elite Quds Force, part of the country's hardline paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corps.
—Tom Vanden Brook, USA Today, 19 June 2025
Beyond them is the Basij, a vast paramilitary network with hundreds of thousands of members embedded in every corner of Iranian society—in the streets, in neighborhoods, in schools, and mosques.
—Narges Bajoghli, Time, 19 June 2025
Members of Iranian paramilitary women forces (Basij) wear masks of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US elect Donald Trump with a red cross of it, during an anti-Israeli rally to show their solidarity with the Palestinian and Lebanese people, in Tehran, January 10, 2025.
—Jesus Mesa, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for paramilitary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for paramilitary
Adjective
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Advertisement Chipping away — Huang was arguing against policies that have seen the U.S. heavily restrict the export of graphics processing units, or GPUs, to China, in a bid to hamstring Beijing’s military capabilities and AI progress.—
Billy Perrigo,
Time,
15 July 2025
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Huang’s visit is being closely watched in both China and the United States, where a bipartisan pair of senators last week sent a letter to the CEO asking him to abstain from meeting companies that are working with military or intelligence bodies.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
15 July 2025
Adjective
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The expansion of China's naval presence comes as the U.S. is preoccupied with tensions in the Middle East, prompting the repositioning of a pair of aircraft carriers—USS Carl Vinson and USS Nimitz—earlier this year and leaving a naval power gap in the western Pacific.—
Ryan Chan,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 July 2025
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Flags at all United States embassies, legations, consular offices and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations will also be flown at half-staff.—
Joyce Orlando,
The Tennessean,
11 July 2025
Noun
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In response, Ukraine devised a futuristic take on hit-and-run guerrilla operations.—
Dexter Filkins,
New Yorker,
14 July 2025
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This week, Petro also halted the extradition of a former leader of a dissident guerrilla faction that had already been approved by Colombia's Supreme Court to face U.S. drug trafficking charges.—
arkansasonline.com,
arkansasonline.com,
5 July 2025
Adjective
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Previous negotiations have stalled over Hamas demands of guarantees that further negotiations would lead to the war's end, while Netanyahu has insisted Israel would resume fighting to ensure the militant group's destruction.—
WAFAA SHURAFA,
arkansasonline.com,
6 July 2025
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The Israeli leader has repeatedly said Hamas must be disarmed, but it is thought that this is something that the militant group has so far refused to discuss.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 July 2025
Noun
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Adding to the Israeli public pressure to end the war is the large number of soldiers, 20, killed in Gaza in the past month alone.—
James Hider,
NPR,
7 July 2025
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Decker is described by authorities as a skilled outdoorsman and former U.S. Army soldier.—
Jenna Sundel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 July 2025
Noun
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The existence of the irregulars raises an important question: How small can a galaxy get?—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
8 May 2025
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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
Noun
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In that story, Kara is approached by galactic warrior Ruthye Marye Knoll (Eve Ridley), who asks for help hunting down those who killed her father and destroyed her world.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
11 July 2025
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In a futuristic and extremely crime-ridden Detroit, cop Alex Murphy (Peter Weller) is killed in the line of duty and brought back as a cyborg warrior by a shady corporation.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
10 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Paramilitary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paramilitary. Accessed 20 Jul. 2025.
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