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DictionarygendarmePolice officer
noun

gendarme

ZHAHN-darm/ˈʒɑːndɑːrm/

A police officer in France or another French-speaking country.

The gendarme directs traffic in her regulation uniform.

A contemporary French gendarme directing traffic, identifiable by her regulation-style blue uniform, French tricolor shoulder patch, and intrinsic GENDARMERIE chest marking.
Etymology
genFrenchpeople, nation
+dFrenchof
+armeFrenchweapon

The French phrase meant “men at arms”: armed men serving as soldiers. The name shifted from mounted troopers to members of the military police, leading to the modern police-officer sense.

In context

Libranima375:32
My opinion is that if God were a gendarme, he would turn robber.
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame - Hugo (Illustrated Audiobook) Part 2 of 2

More examples

  • The traveler asked a gendarme for help.
  • Two gendarmes guarded the entrance.
  • The novel follows a gendarme investigating a rural theft.

Forms

gendarme · gendarmes

Similar words

police officer
Police officer is general; gendarme refers to particular national policing traditions, especially French.
constable
Constable names a policing office in other systems; gendarme is associated with particular national forces.