posse

American  

[pos-ee] / ˈpɒs i /

noun

• posses
  plural

1. posse comitatus.

2. a body or force armed with legal authority.

3. Slang. a group of friends or associates.

   hanging out with your posse; a posse of drug dealers.

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posse British  

/ ˈpɒsɪ /

noun

1. Also called: posse comitatus.  the able-bodied men of a district assembled together and forming a group upon whom the sheriff may call for assistance in maintaining law and order

2. law possibility (esp in the phrase in posse )

3. slang a Jamaican street gang in the US

4. informal a group of friends or associates

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• posses
  plural

Etymology

Origin of posse

First recorded in 1575–85; from Medieval Latin posse “power, force,” noun use of Latin infinitive: “to be able, have power,” contraction of potis “able” + esse “to be”; see potent ¹

Explanation

A posse is group of people who help the police force when necessary. In a classic Western movie, when the sheriff gathers together a posse, its members usually work to find and arrest the bad guys. The classic image of a posse is from the Old West, of a group of armed cowboys on horses, in pursuit of an outlaw. Originally the term was posse comitatus, Latin meaning the force of the country. Today, the word posse is used most often to refer to a group of friends or people with some common interest, in a somewhat joking way, like your posse that gets together to hit all the garage sales together.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

posse posses

Breakdance posse The Rock Steady Crew are introduced with a blast of the Apache drumbeat.

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

Their metallic frames covered in supple, lifelike skin, a posse of new Chinese robots meant for companionship can offer users AI-generated conversation or a hand to hold, complete with manicured nails.

From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026

Rather than turning the song into an obvious posse cut, Díaz treats those voices like hidden ingredients.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026

But for now, no other posse of stocks has come to take their place.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 19, 2026

Word spread, and men for miles around made up a posse.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote

He doesn't posses the game-breaking wonders of Graham, but he's a reliable and intelligent footballer.

From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2025

Thon’s scouting report: Ponce, 17, is a 5-foot-10, right-handed hitting utility player who will mostly concentrate on catching and posses a high on-base offensive profile.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 2, 2024

Butler would need the help of the groups and people she met this week to make up the enormous fundraising advantage both Schiff and Porter posses.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2023

He argued in August 2020 that sheriffs could call upon posses to deal with protesters.

From Salon ● Jan. 13, 2023

The title was largely honorific, but it enabled him to carry a badge and to lead posses, and he sometimes kept one pistol in his side pocket and another strapped to his hip.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

Related Words

• detachment