police officers

noun

plural of police officer
as in policemen
a member of a force charged with law enforcement at the local level there were police officers directing traffic around the scene of the accident

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 police officers In the post-George Floyd era, some young adults have been reluctant to become police officers compared to the days when departments were flooded with applications from eager jobseekers. — Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 18 Oct. 2026 According to Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez, more than 2,000 people were arrested across France, and more than 600 police officers and firefighters were injured. — Kahina Sekkaï, Vanity Fair, 18 Oct. 2026 The Associated Press reported 50 demonstrators, including minors, were detained and at least two police officers were hurt in a protest that required water cannons to disperse the crowd, quoting the LaPresse news agency. — Tyler Speicher, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026 At least two police officers were injured and about 50 demonstrators, including many minors, were detained, the LaPresse news agency reported. — ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026 Zachary Rutherford, the marathon’s official charity chaser, ran for Signal 13, a nonprofit that supports the physical, mental and emotional well-being of Baltimore police officers and their families. — Vivian Yao, Baltimore Sun, 17 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for police officers
  1. policemen
  2. officers
  3. cops
  4. constables
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
  • 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
  • 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
  • The woman was able to flee the scene and located deputy constables.
    — Adam England, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026
  • Troopers and Beacon Falls constables responded to the home and detained Drozdowski, state police said.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 6 May 2026
Definition of constables

Browse Nearby Words

police officer
police officers
police reporter
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Cite this Entry

“Police officers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/police%20officers. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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