1
2
obsolete
: an officer who enforces the judgments of a court or the commands of one in authority
3
: a noncommissioned officer ranking in the army and marine corps above a corporal and below a staff sergeant
broadly
: noncommissioned officer
4
: an officer in a police force ranking in the U.S. just below captain or sometimes lieutenant and in England just below inspector
Examples of sergeant in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Benjamin Therriault, a Richmond Police Department sergeant and union president, said the measure could have been helpful a few years ago during an internal investigation.
—
Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 2 Apr. 2025
Brian Albert, a BPD sergeant who owned the property that was the site of O’Keefe’s death; Brian Higgins, an ATF agent and Albert’s friend who was there that night and has romantic interest in Read; and Colin Albert, Brian Albert’s nephew, who the defense argues had beef with O’Keefe.
—Flint McColgan, Boston Herald, 30 Mar. 2025
The request includes three patrol officers, a traffic and special events sergeant, an internet crimes against children detective, and a digital forensics specialist.
—Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Mar. 2025
LaVigne, a master corporal at the time of his death, was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant.
—Olivia Lloyd, Sun Sentinel, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sergeant
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Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 2 Apr. 2025
Brian Albert, a BPD sergeant who owned the property that was the site of O’Keefe’s death; Brian Higgins, an ATF agent and Albert’s friend who was there that night and has romantic interest in Read; and Colin Albert, Brian Albert’s nephew, who the defense argues had beef with O’Keefe.
—Flint McColgan, Boston Herald, 30 Mar. 2025
The request includes three patrol officers, a traffic and special events sergeant, an internet crimes against children detective, and a digital forensics specialist.
—Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Mar. 2025
LaVigne, a master corporal at the time of his death, was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant.
—Olivia Lloyd, Sun Sentinel, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sergeant
Cite this Entry
“Sergeant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sergeant. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sergeant
noun
ser·geant
ˈsär-jənt 
1
: a military noncommissioned officer with any of the ranks above corporal in the army or the marines or above airman first class in the air force
especially
: an enlisted person with the rank just below that of staff sergeant
2
: a police officer ranking in the U.S. just below captain or sometimes lieutenant
Etymology
Middle English sergeant "sergeant, attendant, servant," from early French sergent, serjant (same meaning), from Latin servient-, serviens, a form of the verb servire "to serve"
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