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• constable
  constable

  noun

  an officer of the peace, having police and minor judicial functions, usually in a small town, rural district, etc.
• Constable
  Constable

  noun

  John, 1776–1837, English painter.

constable

¹ American  

[kon-stuh-buhl, kuhn-] / ˈkɒn stə bəl, ˈkʌn- /

noun

• constables
  plural

1. an officer of the peace, having police and minor judicial functions, usually in a small town, rural district, etc.

2. Chiefly British. a police officer.

3. an officer of high rank in medieval monarchies, usually the commander of all armed forces, especially in the absence of the ruler.

4. the keeper or governor of a royal fortress or castle.

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Constable ² American  

[kuhn-stuh-buhl, kon-] / ˈkʌn stə bəl, ˈkɒn- /

noun

1. John, 1776–1837, English painter.

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constable ¹ British  

/ ˈkʌnstəbəl, ˌkɒn- /

noun

1. (in Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, etc) a police officer of the lowest rank

2. any of various officers of the peace, esp one who arrests offenders, serves writs, etc

3. the keeper or governor of a royal castle or fortress

4. (in medieval Europe) the chief military officer and functionary of a royal household, esp in France and England

5. an officer of a hundred in medieval England, originally responsible for raising the military levy but later assigned other administrative duties

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Constable ² British  

/ ˈkʌnstəbəl /

noun

1. John. 1776–1837, English landscape painter, noted particularly for his skill in rendering atmospheric effects of changing light

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• constableship
  noun
• underconstable
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• constables
  plural

Etymology

Origin of constable

1200–50; Middle English conestable < Anglo-French, Old French < Late Latin comes stabulī count ² of the stable ¹

Explanation

A small-town police officer is sometimes known as a constable. If you live in an extremely tiny town, the constable may show up at your door when you dial 9-1-1 for help with a raccoon stuck in your chimney. In Britain and Canada, a constable is the lowest-ranking officer in a police force. It's less common in the U.S., and the word's exact meaning varies a bit from state to state. In some places, a constable is only authorized to serve subpoenas to people who are required to testify in court. Other constables have full law enforcement powers. The Latin root of constable is comes stabuli, "attendant to the stables."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

constable Constable constables

Andrew's lawyers have used a judicial review to challenge the actions of the force's chief constable and the Central Criminal Court.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

There were also seven novels about a fictional policeman, William Warwick, who rises from humble constable in the Metropolitan police to the very top of his profession.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

He was a detective constable and lead investigator in the case of two-year-old Ethan Ives-Griffiths, whose grandparents were jailed for murder last year, and has given evidence in other high-profile murder trials in north Wales.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

Among other witnesses in the second phase were police, Northern Ireland's police ombudsman and the then RUC chief constable, Ronnie Flanagan.

From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026

The constable looked to the magistrate for orders.

From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare

Assistant Chief Constable Peter Gardner said Burgess was in his own room, isolated from residents and posed no risk.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

"A large scale criminal investigation is underway regarding unlawful protest on the Garvaghy Road," Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said in a statement.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

"When I joined police 15 months ago they said to be ready for anything, so I guess this demonstrates that's true!" said Constable Taylor, who escorted the pup.

From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026

There has been large emergency service presence in the area since the early hours of Sunday, which Gloucestershire Police Temporary Chief Constable Maggie Blyth said would remain over the next few days.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

What’s more, unlike the paintings bequeathed to posterity by Constable or Rembrandt, his music has not ossified, frozen for ever in time.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

The crimes are alleged to have taken place between 1995 and 2004 while the officers were on duty as constables.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

Long before modern professional police forces, public order depended on watches, constables, alarms, and forms of compelled or expected community response.

From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026

It will be made up of an inspector, three sergeants and 45 constables.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

Badat worked on a challenge to DeSoto County districts that were used for the county’s board of supervisors, school board, election commission, county constables and their judges.

From Salon ● May 16, 2026

When we got about half way to St. Michael’s, while the constables having us in charge were looking ahead, Henry inquired of me what he should do with his pass.

From "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" by Frederick Douglass

Related Words

• detective
• patrolman
• policeman
• policewoman