paddy wagon

noun

1. Informal. patrol wagon.

paddy wagon

noun

1. See patrol wagon
   an informal word for patrol wagon

Word History and Origins

Origin of paddy wagon¹

1925–30; probably paddy policeman, special use of paddy

Example Sentences

Eventually another cop grabbed me by the shirt and started perp-walking me over to a waiting blue paddy wagon.

From The Daily Beast

Jessie Shepherd, then 16, was soaked when she was loaded up in a paddy wagon.

From The Daily Beast

We have a paddy wagon for that purpose and a driver for the purpose and uniforms and insignias and all on it.

From Project Gutenberg

You mentioned the paddy wagon coming down the Main Street ramp.

From Project Gutenberg

However, each vehicle coming in was searched, and the paddy wagon was operated by an officer named Lewis.

From Project Gutenberg

Yes, sir; Vaughn, in his report, did not note anything about anyone coming in the ramp other than squad cars and the paddy wagon.

From Project Gutenberg

About This Word

More context on paddy wagon

Paddy is a pet form of Patrick, a name commonly found in Ireland, whose patron saint is St. Patrick. That’s fine and all; plenty of individuals do go by the nickname Paddy. But using Paddy as a stand-in for all Irish people? That’s definitely not fine.

While many people are proud of their Irish heritage, it can be easy to forget how poorly treated the Irish were, especially by the British and as American immigrants.

While its exact origin is unclear, paddy wagon, for a police van or car, may be linked to a historic stereotype that painted Irish immigrants as no more than “drunk criminals” in the U.S.

If knowing the history of paddy wagon has got you reflecting on your word choices, this slideshow, “These Common Words Have Offensive Histories,” discusses many other words whose place in your vocab you may want to reconsider. 

Keep in mind …

Instead of paddy wagon, why not use the actual names of the vehicles that members of law enforcement drive?

The specific vehicle a paddy wagon refers to is a patrol wagon, but arrested suspects and prisoners can also be variously transported in a police car, a squad car,  police van, police bus (sometimes called a prison bus), or a prisoner transport vehicle.

And if you don’t need to refer to a vehicle, you can also simply say a person was arrested—no reason to insult an ethnic group while doing so. Informal alternatives for arrest include cuff, detain, nab, or pinch.

Head over to Thesaurus.com for more synonyms for arrest.