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patrolman

[ puh-trohl-muh n ]
/ pəˈtroʊl mən /
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR patrolman ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural pa·trol·men.

a police officer who is assigned to patrol a specific district, route, etc.
a person who patrols.

RELATED WORDS

policewoman, constable, detective, cop, force, corps, bobby, badge, patrol, blue, bear, heat, officer, bluecoat, police, law, fed, gendarme, flatfoot, copper

Nearby words

  1. patroclus,
  2. patrol,
  3. patrol car,
  4. patrol torpedo boat,
  5. patrol wagon,
  6. patrologic,
  7. patrologist,
  8. patrology,
  9. patrolwoman,
  10. patron

Origin of patrolman

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50; patrol + -man

Usage note

See -man.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for patrolman

British Dictionary definitions for patrolman

patrolman

/ (pəˈtrəʊlmən) /

noun plural -men

mainly US a man, esp a policeman, who patrols a certain area
British a man employed to patrol an area to help motorists in difficulty
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for patrolman

patrolman

n.

"police constable on a particular beat," 1841, from patrol (n.) + man (n.).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper