gendarme
Americannoun
plural
gendarmes-
a police officer in any of several European countries, especially a French police officer.
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a soldier, especially in France, serving in an army group acting as armed police with authority over civilians.
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(formerly) a cavalryman in charge of a French cavalry squad.
noun
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a member of the police force in France or in countries formerly influenced or controlled by France
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a slang word for a policeman
-
a sharp pinnacle of rock on a mountain ridge, esp in the Alps
Etymology
Origin of gendarme
1540–50; < Middle French, earlier gens d'armes, alteration of gent d'armes people at arms
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Outside, TV crews stood at the ready and a comedian dressed as a gendarme sold “genuine fake Swiss passports.”
From Slate • Jul. 22, 2025
“Closed. You’ll have to walk around,” a French gendarme had just told them, gesturing towards the south.
From BBC • Jul. 23, 2024
Wright also added that a gendarme caught on film with a firearm would be identified and prosecuted.
From Reuters • Oct. 21, 2022
Francois V had indeed worked as a gendarme and a police officer, and as a town councilor in the town of Prades-le-Lez in southern France.
From Seattle Times • Oct. 1, 2021
After the news, a gendarme would come and turn off the television set, taking home the key.
From "Krik? Krak!" by Edwidge Danticat
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
