LAWMEN Synonyms: 42 Similar and Opposite Words

lawmen

noun

plural of lawman

as in policemen

a member of a force charged with law enforcement at the local level as the rural county's chief lawman, the sheriff has to patrol a vast area with only minimal manpower

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

civilians

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of lawmen Now, in a bit of political deja vu, the two lawmen are facing off again for the job of leading the largest sheriff’s department in the country. — Connor Sheets, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026 As the lawmen avoided the beam of light and approached the car, the suspects were able to get inside and lock the doors. — Dave Duffey, Outdoor Life, 26 Mar. 2026 That church would become a topic of scrutiny and sensationalism by regional lawmen and news outlets alike throughout much of 1912. — Lauren Nicole Henley, The Conversation, 17 Feb. 2026 Who was this irritant who had eluded the most sophisticated lawmen in the country, thanks to the triviality of his crimes? — David Grann, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2025 Cinematic lawmen like Little Bill in Unforgiven and Wyatt Earp in My Darling Clementine—films that inspired Eddington—commanded their towns with a near iron will. — Robert Daniels, Time, 10 Oct. 2025 Kris Kristofferson and Treat Williams as lawmen whose desert discovery leads down a path to information about the Kennedy assassination. — Rich Heldenfels, Boston Herald, 31 Aug. 2025 Kirsh’s shock of white hair and dry, sardonic air give Olyphant refreshing distance from the upright lawmen he’s known for. — Alison Herman, Variety, 5 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for lawmen

Noun

When plans were made for a visit to Japan by President Eisenhower in 1960—it was eventually called off—there weren’t enough policemen to guard his route into Tokyo, so the yakuza were mobilized to help.

— Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
On the other side of Via Solari, a handful of policemen gathered around dozens of demonstrators, who ardently—but peacefully—chanted for entirely different reasons.

— José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of policemen

Noun

Dozens of armored cops were still standing guard, shields raised, after a night when 500 people were taken into custody in the French capital alone.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 20 Oct. 2026
With no police in sight, Sanaa and other shopkeepers who were targeted along the Rue Étienne Marcel watched as small groups of looters used mobile phones to tip each other off to the cops’ whereabouts, handily winning the cat-and-mouse chase.

— Michael Finnegan, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of cops

Noun

Others spoke of police chokeholds and the grainy footage that showed officers striking King with batons.

— David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
Two off-duty California State Parks officers rescued a woman from a burning vehicle Friday morning after a rollover off Highway 70 in Sutter County, officials said.

— Cecilio Padilla, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of officers

Noun

The author argues that sheriffs should not have independent authority over ballots and election procedures, and calls for the state legislature to clarify sheriff powers by amending the constitution to make sheriffs appointed rather than elected, similar to police chiefs.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 31 Mar. 2026
Those sheriffs were featured in a recent Courier Journal investigation that found that one in six Kentucky counties has had a sheriff criminally charged or convicted since 2010.

— Josh Wood, Louisville Courier Journal, 26 Sep. 2025

Definition of sheriffs

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“Lawmen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lawmen. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of lawmen

noun

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