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• bobby
  bobby

  noun

  a policeman.
• Bobby
  Bobby

  noun

  a first name, often a form of Robert or Roberta.

bobby

¹ American  

[bob-ee] / ˈbɒb i /

noun

British Informal.

• bobbies
  plural

1. a policeman.

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Bobby ² American  

[bob-ee] / ˈbɒb i /

Or Bobbie

noun

1. a first name, often a form of Robert or Roberta.

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bobby British  

/ ˈbɒbɪ /

noun

1. informal a British policeman

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• bobbies
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of bobby

1835–45; special use of Bobby, for Sir Robert Peel, who set up the Metropolitan Police system of London in 1828

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bobby Bobby bobbies

William Wilson, a local police detective, was appointed as coroner's officer to deal with the situation - and did so in a manner most unlike a traditional bobby.

From BBC ● Apr. 25, 2026

“It’s a visual of innocence for this girl to wear these grown-up shoes with a heel, and then pair them with these youthful bobby socks,” he explained of Dorothy.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 24, 2025

But Schwartz told me that he sees even this kind of damage most often when people use bobby pins or small spatulas to clean their ears.

From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2023

The bathroom is stocked with Listerine, Lubriderm lotion and bobby pins; the fridges teem with Red Bull, baby carrots and a wide selection of juices.

From New York Times ● Mar. 1, 2023

She pulled a bobby pin from her hair and began to pick her teeth.

From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison

“Bobby Robotowitz” follows Dina, a flailing novelist, mother and wife, as she begins chatting with Bobby, whom she finds an unlikely confidant.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

And then, of course, the conversation must turn to Sir Bobby Charlton, who survived the Munich Air Disaster with Manchester United in 1958 to become arguably England's most famous footballer of his era.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

Bobby Kennedy’s work for social justice was rooted in his Catholicism.

From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2026

Bobby Pulido: I was a political science major in college.

From Slate ● Sep. 28, 2026

A friend had called the State Department in the late 1990s and asked if Bobby could return home.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

She added: "That's why we're putting almost 3,000 more bobbies on the beat in neighbourhood roles this year."

From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2025

More than 10,000 police officers will be on duty Monday, with London bobbies supplemented by reinforcements from all of Britain’s 43 police forces.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 18, 2022

They’re happier and sharper, and the rooftop concert crackles, down to McCartney ridiculing the bobbies who shut them down.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 27, 2021

Rather than stopping the prank, the bobbies simply insisted the Americans don life jackets and be accompanied by a police launch.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 3, 2016

If it won’t move, w’y don’t they send for a company of London bobbies and make ’em tell it to ‘move on,’ it couldn’t refuse, you know, for nothin’ can resist that.

From Rivers of Ice by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne

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