an officer of the peace, having police and minor judicial functions, usually in a small town, rural district, etc.
Chiefly British. a police officer.
an officer of high rank in medieval monarchies, usually the commander of all armed forces, especially in the absence of the ruler.
the keeper or governor of a royal fortress or castle.
(in Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, etc) a police officer of the lowest rank
any of various officers of the peace, esp one who arrests offenders, serves writs, etc
the keeper or governor of a royal castle or fortress
(in medieval Europe) the chief military officer and functionary of a royal household, esp in France and England
an officer of a hundred in medieval England, originally responsible for raising the military levy but later assigned other administrative duties
1200–50; Middle English conestable < Anglo-French, Old French < Late Latin comes stabulī count 2 of the stable 1
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."
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Peter Wai, a British border force officer and police constable, helped with information-gathering and surveillance.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026
He was found guilty at the Court of Appeal in November – the first time a chief constable has received such a sanction – and ordered to pay a fine and costs totalling nearly £300,000.
From BBC • May 1, 2026
But Northamptonshire Police repeatedly refused to hand it over, prompting her to take legal action against the county's chief constable, Ivan Balhatchet, for contempt of court.
From BBC • May 1, 2026
Sometimes a junior constable walked into the frame and saluted her.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026
“If the gentleman files a complaint about the noise, we may end up gaining the attention of a constable after all, though not in the way I intended.”
From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
