cop

¹

[kop]

noun

Informal.

1. a police officer.

2. a person who seeks to regulate a specified behavior, activity, practice, etc..

   Once we have the government dictating language usage, then we'll start getting language cops.

cop

²

[kop]

verb (used with object)

Slang.

copped, copping 

1. to catch; nab.

2. to steal; filch.

3. to buy (narcotics).

verb phrase

1. cop out

   1. to avoid one's responsibility, the fulfillment of a promise, etc.; renege; back out (often followed by on orof ).

      He never copped out on a friend in need.

      You agreed to go, and you can't cop out now.

   2. cop a plea.

cop

³

[kop]

noun

1. a conical mass of thread, yarn, etc., wound on a spindle.

2. British Dialect.,  the top or tip of something, as the crest of a hill.

COP

⁴

abbreviation

Thermodynamics.

1. coefficient of performance.

cop.

⁵

abbreviation

1. copper.

2. copyright; copyrighted.

Cop.

⁶

abbreviation

1. Copernican.

2. Coptic.

cop

¹

/ kɒp /

noun

1. another name for policeman

2. an arrest (esp in the phrase a fair cop )

3. an instance of plagiarism

verb

1. to seize or catch

2. to steal

3. to buy, steal, or otherwise obtain (illegal drugs) Compare score

4. Also: cop it. to suffer (a punishment)

   you'll cop a clout if you do that!

5. slang

   1. to accept a penalty without complaint

   2. to have good fortune

cop

²

/ kɒp /

noun

1. a conical roll of thread wound on a spindle

2. dialect,  the top or crest, as of a hill

COP

³

abbreviation

1. Certificate of Proficiency: a pass in a university subject

cop

⁴

/ kɒp /

noun

1. slang,  (usually used with a negative) worth or value

   that work is not much cop

Word History and Origins

Origin of cop¹

First recorded in 1855–60; shortening of copper ²

Origin of cop²

First recorded in 1695–1705; of uncertain origin; compare cap (obsolete) “to arrest,” Scots cap “to seize,” ultimately from dialectal Old French caper “to take,” from Latin capere

Origin of cop³

First recorded before 1000; Middle English cop(e), coppe “summit, peak; top (of a tower, building),” also “crown (of the head),” Old English cop(p) “tip, top, summit”; probably cognate with Dutch kop, German Kopf “head”; cup

Word History and Origins

Origin of cop¹

C18: (vb) perhaps from obsolete cap to arrest, from Old French caper to seize; sense 1, back formation from _copper ²

Origin of cop²

Old English cop, copp top, summit, of uncertain origin; perhaps related to Old English copp _cup

Origin of cop³

C19: n use of _cop ¹ (in the sense: to catch, hence something caught, something of value)

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. cop a plea,

   1. to plead guilty or confess in return for receiving a lighter sentence.

   2. to plead guilty to a lesser charge as a means of bargaining one's way out of standing trial for a more serious charge; plea-bargain.

Example Sentences

Maybe they call the local cops to do that for them.

From Salon

“There were three men, and one of them shot her, and the cops are looking for him right now … They have their guns out,” the neighbor said.

From Los Angeles Times

As Martin muses about what, say, “‘Prime Suspect’ would look like with Martin the lead” — ”I’m 38, I can play a cop” — they laugh.

From Los Angeles Times

Immigration and Customs Enforcement is aggressively wooing recruits with experience slapping handcuffs on suspects: sheriff’s deputies, state troopers and local cops.

From Los Angeles Times

“In general, in the neighborhood we don’t want to call the cops because they’re not going to solve anything or they’re going to arrest someone, or beat someone or shoot someone,” he said.

From Los Angeles Times

When To Use

What else does cop mean?

A cop is an informal term for a police officer.As a verb, cop is used in a variety of slang expressions meaning "grab" or "obtain," from copping a feel on someone (not recommended) to copping out on going to a party (meaning “not going”) to copping to (meaning “confessing to”) eating the last slice of pizza.