What does gunmen mean?
Gunmen is the standard plural of gunman and refers to more than one man armed with a gun. In contemporary usage, the word most often carries a threatening or criminal implication: gunmen may be robbers, terrorists, assassins, or members of an armed gang, although its basic dictionary meaning is simply men armed with firearms. The plural can suggest a group with a shared role, but it does not necessarily mean the men acted together. In journalism and crime fiction, gunmen is common in reports and narratives involving raids, standoffs, shootings, and organized violence. The term is not limited to a regional variety, although gunfighter and gunslinger are especially associated with depictions of the American West. Gunman itself has been in English since the early modern period, and gunmen preserves its distinctive plural in -men rather than the expected -mans. The word is useful in both literal reports and vivid storytelling, while its strong associations with violence make a neutral phrase such as armed men more precise in some contexts.
nounGunmen are men armed with guns, especially criminals or people involved in threatening or violent activity. The word can also refer to men hired to use firearms in a killing or attack.
- Men armed with guns, especially criminals, attackers, assassins, or members of an armed group.
- Men hired to use guns in a killing or violent mission.
"Police said the two gunmen were detained after a prolonged standoff."
"Police surrounded the building after receiving reports that masked gunmen were inside."
"The novel describes a network of gunmen operating across the border."
Gunmen is the standard irregular plural of gunman, changing -an to -en rather than adding -s.
"Two gunmen were arrested in connection with the robbery."
The plural gunmen suggests a threatening group, even when the individual men are not acting together, giving the word a stronger narrative effect than the singular.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of gunmen
The compound gunman was formed in English from gun and man, with the sense of a man who carries or uses a gun, during the early 17th century. Its standard plural, gunmen, developed by changing the final syllable to -men. The word gun is a late medieval English borrowing whose more distant origin is uncertain, so specific proposals for its ultimate source should be treated cautiously. Gunner, gunning, gunpowder, and gunmanship belong to a wider family of words built on the same English root.
Related word forms
How gunmen is actually used
The word is especially common in news reporting, crime fiction, and discussions of organized violence. It usually has a threatening or criminal connotation, although it can be used literally for people armed with firearms.
Easily confused with gunmen
A gunman is one man armed with or using a gun, while gunmen is the standard plural form referring to more than one.