police
[ puh-lees ]
/ pəˈlis /
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noun
verb (used with object), po·liced, po·lic·ing.
to regulate, control, or keep in order by or as if by means of police.
Military. to clean and keep clean (a camp, post, etc.)
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Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?
First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.
First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.
First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.
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Origin of police
1520–30; <Middle French: government, civil administration, police <Late Latin polītia citizenship, government, for Latin polītīa;see polity
pronunciation note for police
Many English words exemplify the original stress rule of Old English and other early Germanic languages, according to which all parts of speech except unprefixed verbs were stressed on the first syllable, and prefixed verbs were stressed on the syllable immediately following the prefix. Although the scope of this rule has been greatly restricted by the incorporation into English of loanwords that exhibit other stress patterns, the rule has always remained operative to some degree, and many loanwords have been conformed to it throughout the history of English. For South Midland and Midland U.S. speakers in particular, shifting the stress in borrowed nouns from a noninitial syllable to the first syllable is still an active process, yielding [poh-lees] /ˈpoʊ lis/ for police and [dee-troit] /ˈdi trɔɪt/ for Detroit, as well as cement, cigar, guitar, insurance, umbrella, and idea said as [see-ment], /ˈsi mɛnt/, [see-gahr], /ˈsi gɑr/, [git-ahr], /ˈgɪt ɑr/, [in-shoor-uhns], /ˈɪn ʃʊər əns/, [uhm-brel-uh], /ˈʌm brɛl ə/, and [ahy-deeuh]. /ˈaɪ diə/.
OTHER WORDS FROM police
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for police
British Dictionary definitions for police
police
/ (pəˈliːs) /
noun
- the police the organized civil force of a state, concerned with maintenance of law and order, the detection and prevention of crime, etc
- (as modifier)a police inquiry
(functioning as plural) the members of such a force collectively
any organized body with a similar functionsecurity police
archaic
- the regulation and control of a community, esp in regard to the enforcement of law, the prevention of crime, etc
- the department of government concerned with this
verb (tr)
Word Origin for police
C16: via French from Latin polītīa administration, government; see polity
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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