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police Definition

po·lice (pə lēs′)

noun

  1. Archaic the regulation within a community of morals, safety, sanitation, etc.; public order; law enforcement
  2. the governmental department (of a city, state, etc.) organized for keeping order, enforcing the law, and preventing, detecting, and prosecuting crimes
    1. a governmental force, or body of persons, established and maintained for keeping order, etc.
    2. a private organization like this security police at a college
    3. the members of any such force
    4. Informal those who act as self-appointed guardians of morality, propriety, style, etc.: usually somewhat disparaging the fashion police, the language police
  4. ☆ U.S. Army
    1. the work or duty of keeping a camp, post, etc. clean and orderly
    2. the soldiers charged with such duty kitchen police

Etymology: Fr < LL politia, administration of the commonwealth (in L, the state) < Gr politeia, the state, citizenship < politēs, citizen < polis, city < IE *pel-, fortress (> Sans pūr, town), orig., filled wall, special use of base *pel-, to flow, fill > full

transitive verb -·liced′, -·lic′·ing

  1. to control, protect, or keep orderly with or as police or a similar force to police the streets
  2. ☆ to make or keep (a military camp, post, etc.) clean and orderly: often with up

police Synonyms

police

n.

police force, law enforcement body, FBI, police officers, policemen, custodians of the law, detective force, military police, M.P.'S*, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, RCMP*, Mounties*, the law*, the fuzz*, the heat*, the man*, canine corps, New York's Finest*.

police Synonyms

police

v.

watch, control, patrol; see guard 2.

police Usage Examples

Preposition: on

horseback: By this time the police on horseback were looking perturbed.

Converse of subject

raid: Then she compares a bar being raided by the police to an attack by skinheads.

Adjective modifier

  • armed: Late one night, in December 1988, Idah was visiting a neighbor's home when armed police stormed the house.
  • secret: Workers couldn't organize themselves to fight against their exploitation at work for fear of the secret police.
  • full-time: You first sit have learned the of community cards is primarily a. Rick tudor engaged full-time monument police you first sit time to form.
  • Serb: Albanian informer for Serb police, on plans to murder Albanians and commit atrocities that could be blamed on the KLA.
  • Iraqi: Iraqi police say there was a large crowd of people near the station when the vehicle exploded.

Converse of object

  • notify: Report a minor crime online A service to notify the police of some types of minor, non-emergency crime.
  • tell: But The Ghost sank the ship and escaped, so there will be no witnesses who might tell the police about him.
  • assist: FAIR case workers have been assisting the police and already two dossiers on a series of murders in the South Armagh area.
  • call: The book could almost be called a police procedural / courtroom drama.
  • mount: From all quarters foot and mounted police appeared on the scene.

Modifies a noun

  • officer: Monument police officer no limit texas players also tend.
  • station: You will also see a police station on the left.
  • force: We believe police forces would rather see a stick on legible plate than a small plate which cannot be read.
  • custody: Such conditions make further deaths in police custody an inevitability.
  • constable: The warrant also authorizes a police constable to open locked premises.
  • investigation: Firstly, it has a supervisory role over the police investigation of complaints.

Noun used with modifier

  • riot: More than half of these protests ended in the deployment of riot police or the army.
  • monument: Monument police officer no limit texas players also tend.