secret police

noun

1. a police force that functions as the enforcement arm of a government's political policies and whose activities, which often include surveillance, intimidation, and physical violence as a means of suppressing dissent, are usually concealed from the public.

secret police

noun

1. a police force that operates relatively secretly to check subversion or political dissent

Word History and Origins

Origin of secret police¹

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

The ban, which comes into effect on 1 January 2026, is part of a series of bills that aims to protect residents from what Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom has called "secret police" roaming the streets.

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“Sen. Scott Wiener’s legislation banning our federal law enforcement from wearing masks and his rhetoric comparing them to ‘secret police’ — likening them to the gestapo — is despicable,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.

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Cooper interviewed Parviz Sabeti, a former director of counter espionage for the Shah's secret police, as part of his research for a biography of the Shah.

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Critics argue that his reluctance to fully reform the justice system or confront the legacy of the Securitate – the feared secret police – allowed a culture of impunity to take root.

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There are CIA suits, secret police, faceless bureaucrats and backstabbing traitors lurking in these pages.

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