List of slang terms for police officers
Encyclopedia
Many slang terms for police officer
s exist. The terms are also applied by inmates toward uniformed prison staff. These are often used by the public rather than the police themselves. Many are considered offensive
The precise sociological
and etymological
provenance of some of these terms is significant:
. It represents that Hawaii was the fiftieth state.
5's, The : New York City Police. Reference to Police followup Form DD-5, which is standard documentation filed by officers and detectives during active cases.
Accoutrements : British police terminology for a police constables personal equipment. At signing-on parade, the procedure was to give the order 'show your accoutrements', at which the constables would produce their handcuffs, truncheons, whistles and notebooks for inspection. This was common practice up to the early 1990s. As officers now carry more equipment for their protection, having every officer produce this at the beginning of a shift would be impracticable. Up until the introduction of police radios officers carried a whistle, (to signal to officers that they required assistance, and to attract the attention of the public) and 3 Old Pence so that, whilst on patrol, the officer could ring the police station from a public phone kiosk. (This amount would, of course, have varied according to the minimum cost of a call from a phone-box.)
Asfalt Kovboyu (Asphalt Cowboy) : Turkish, slang, relates the modern police officers to cowboys. Police officers are called cowboys in Turkey, due to their lawless acts.
Aynasız : The most common slang word to address a police officer in Turkish. The word literally means "mirrorless", and its attribution to a police officer suggests that a cop is perceived as someone who constantly accuses others of vice, whereas he himself has no mirror to see his own vice. It is the semi-official equivalent of the English word "pig" (only when used to refer to the police), and commonly used when translating English-spoken movies into Turkish. Pronunciation is roughly I-nuh-suzz. (Plural: Aynasızlar)
.
Bacon : US. Derived from pigs; often used in the structure "I smell bacon" to ridicule and deride the presence of an officer when even barely out of earshot.
Bacon sandwich, or Jam sandwich : UK, slang, derogatory, for traffic car, from the colour-scheme, which is generally white, with a longitudinal red, or red and yellow, stripe on each side. (This colour-scheme is dated, modern markings are somewhat different.)
Bait : UK. A term meaning the police or doing something that will get you caught.
Barney : US, term coined after Barney Fife from The Andy Griffith Show
.
Batsi :Greece, (sing. Batsos, in Greek: Μπάτσος), derogatory, the most common slang word for Greek police officers. Literally means punch or slap, derived from the widespread police brutality (and the according mentality), especially when they used to serve oppressive and authoritarian governments in the recent past. The most common anti-police moto is: Batsi, gourounia, dolofoni (cops, pigs, killers), shout en masse in many demonstrations.
Battle Taxi : UK (Liverpool) slang for police van or minibus used to carry a number of officers to the scene of an incident and a similar vehicle used to carry prisoners.
Batty Squad Bike : UK (London) offensive slang relating to police motorcyclists.
The Bay : US, slang term for Eastern Long Islanders. Derived from the Bay Constable and it is used when someone thinks it's a cop, but it's just the Constable.
Bear : US, short for "Smokey Bear
" in reference to the hats worn by some law enforcement officers similar to the ranger hat
worn by "Smokey Bear". "Bear bait" is a reference to speeders, who may draw the attention of the police and allow slightly slower traffic to exceed the speed limit in their wake. "Bear in the Air" is a reference to a police chopper. "Bear in a plain brown wrapper" is a reference to an unmarked patrol car.. "Care Bear" is slang for a patrol officer in the vicinity of a construction zone with lights on to encourage motorist to slow down. "Full Grown Bear" refers to state patrol officers exclusively, where the term bear can refer to any police officer.
Bängen : Swedish slang term for the police. Originally an old Swedish word for devil, from Romani
Beng with the same meaning.
Berry : Originating from blueberry, referring to the blue uniform most officers wear.
Boxer briefs
: Greek slang. Refers to the police car
. It originates from a joke that refers to the police car as such, since "it carries two testicles inside", in reference to the police officers.
The Big Big Big Big : Originating in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Referring to an over-inflated sense of power.
Big Blue Machine : A somewhat derisive term by smaller independent Municipal Police Services in Ontario to describe the perception the Ontario Provincial Police, or any other large regional police service "assimilating" (assuming policing duties and taking on the staff and resources of) smaller police services. The OPP and other services thus extend the ribbing in various jokes derived from the fictional Borg
of Star Trek
.
Bill : see Old Bill "The Bill" is the title of two decades of TV soap opera popular in the UK, based in a fictional London borough.
Bizzies : Common Liverpool
slang term for the police, it was invented as the police were always too "busy" to help. Also that the police are seen as "busy-bodies" i.e. that they ask too many questions.
Black and White: US, usually refers to a police car
, but also extends to the police themselves.
Black Rat : a slang term for a (UK) traffic officer. Based on the idea that traffic officers will happily prosecute other officers if caught breaking the law. Similarly to the way a black rat will eat its own young.
Blue Heelers : This is a term used in Australia and is related to a breed of dog, the Australian Cattle Dog
. It reflects the personality and appearance (blue uniform) of a police officer. Its use has been popularised by the Australian police drama series Blue Heelers
.
Blue Meanies : This is a 1960s hippie
slang term for the police, it was used in the Beatles film the Yellow Submarine, although many viewers may not have realized its significance. First used during the Free Speech Movement
about the Alameda County Sheriff's Office
.
Bluebottle : UK, an archaic derogatory term for policeman that may have derived from Cockney rhyming slang
and from the action of police when responding to a serious incident, as "swarming like Bluebottles
", or blowflies. ('Bottle' is an abbreviation of 'bottle and glass', which is rhyming slang for 'arse', as in the phrase; 'lost your bottle', for having lost one's nerve). (See also Bottles).
Blue steel : A slang term used by officers to describe a robotic police aid (usually a bomb disarming or disposal robot), or a police-issue side arm.
Blålys : Norwegian term, meaning Blue lights, referring to the blue emergency light on police cars
Bobby: UK, derived from the British Home Secretary, Sir Robert Peel
(Bobby being a nickname for Robert) the founder of the Metropolitan Police
. Occurs in fixed phrases e.g. "bobby on the beat", "village bobby". Commonly used as a name of an officer in a helmet walking the streets. Special Constables are sometimes referred to as "Hobby Bobbies".
Boys in blue : in reference to the blue uniform.
Bull : An American term usually used to refer to railroad police but may also indicate regular police officers. Also used in German ("Bulle") as a widespread insult for the police officer, sometimes in conjunction with the German word for pig "Bullenschwein".
Bully, Bullymen or Bullyman : Old aboriginal slang for the state police in Queensland Australia.
Buttons : US, used in a black neighborhood, referring to more-traditional police uniforms with brass buttons.
Boton : Uruguay and Argentina. As in several other countries, police uniforms had big badges and buttons.
Bronze : Australian reference
Byling : Old Swedish slang for patrolling officers. The word is of uncertain origins and rarely used nowadays. Svenska Akademiens ordbok
Boys- Mostly use in Baltimore,Md to refer to the cops.
Cana : Argentinean slang for police officers and lunfardo
term for jail.
Cinder Dick : An old term for railroad police detective, derived from the detective having to walk on the railroad ballast rock, also known as "cinders".
Cinzentinhos: Mozambique, in reference to the officers' gray uniform. One literal translation of the word would be "Little Grays"
City Kitty : local police, such as a city or township.
City Pigs : Used by the Zodiac Killer in regard to the police around the San Francisco Bay Area.
Cherry Toppers, Cherry Tops, or Cherries : Often used in reference to police cars which in some nations bear red lights on the top of the car. See Cherry top (slang)
.
Chickens : Name used for police agents in the Netherlands.
Chimps : UK slang term for Community police officers, Acronym for Completely Hopeless In Most Policing Situations
Chipper : California Highway Patrol Motorcycle Cop. From the show "Chips"
Cocos: Scottish, rhyming slang for coco pops (the cops)
Collar: American and British slang for when an officer catches or apprehends a suspect (collared/having your collar felt). Also used in bravado between officers 'good collar' meaning good arrest or stop.
Cop or Copper : While commonly believed to be an acronym for Constable On Patrol, the term refers to "one who captures or snatches". This word first appeared in the early 18th century, and can be matched with the word "cap", which has the same meaning and whose etymology
can be traced to the Latin
word 'capere'. (The word retains this meaning in other contexts: teenagers "cop a feel" on a date, and they have also been known to "cop an attitude".) Variation: Copper. It is also believed that the term Copper was the original, unshortened word, popularly believed to represent the copper
badges American officers used to wear at the time of origin, but in fact probably used in Britain to mean "someone who cops" long before this. It is also believed to come from the Latin word 'Corpore' meaning body, i.e. a body of men.
Copcycles : A slang term for police officers on bicycles.
Cossa : Sinhala. pronounced 'Cos-sa', Derived from 'Constable' or its localized version 'Costha-pal'.
County Brownie : A slang term for a county officer because of their brown uniforms and cars.
County Mountie : Term for the county sheriff and deputies.
Cozzers: A term used in Great Britain in order to describe or talk about police officers.
Crackers: A slang term for the police in Florida especially in south Florida
Crimefighter: Term for a policeman on a particular crime fighting spree.
Crusher : Of unknown origin but may have come from the nickname used for the Royal Navy Regulating Branch
.
Cuntstubble : Over emphasising of the Police rank "Constable".
Cheese: The Baltimore police force to criminals (2011)
Cheese Van: Out dated South African slang for Police Vehicles, based on the vehicles being bright yellow.
Danthay: (Nepal) - A term to describe a cop with a baton (known locally as a "danda").
Demon (plural Demons) : (New Zealand) - A term to describe police "detectives".
Dibble or The Dibble : Arises from the police officer in the Hanna-Barbera
animated programme Top Cat
. Most commonly used in Manchester
.
Dicks: Slang for detectives. Apparently originally coined in Canada and brought south by rumrunners during Prohibition. The fictional comic strip character Dick Tracy
was given the first name of "Dick" in token of its being a slang expression for "detective."
Do-do nutters or The Do-dos : Arises from the stereotype of police officers eating donuts.
Dogs: used in many European languages as an insulting term for police similar to pig in English
DRC or The DRC : Dirty Rotten Cop(per).
Ducks and Geese : Cockney rhyming slang
for police.
Doughnut Commando: Arises when rookie or physically fit cops describe older or out of shape colleague.
Doughnut Patrol: Derived from the video game "Godfather 2".
Doughnut Shop: Because the stereotypical cop will be seen eating doughnuts.
Doughnut Squad: Derived from an episode of 'The Sopranos'.; Tony Soprano is in talks with Ron Zellman & he refers to the police as 'The Doughnut Squad'.
British
for police reversed as seen through rear vision mirror. Motorway (freeway) patrol cars have police written backwards on the front - so it can be read normally in a rear view mirror.
Evel Knievel : Used by Australian truck drivers to describe police motorcyclists; from famed stunt rider Evel Knievel
. Motorcycle cop as described by Jerry Reed in the movie Smokey & The Bandit.
Farbror Blå : Uncle Blue Swedish slang, blue due to their appearance (color of their uniform). The nickname originates from the children's book "Aunt Green, Aunt Brown and Aunt Lavender", by Elsa Beskow
, where "Uncle Blue" is one of the characters.
Feds : Usually used in the United States to refer to higher federal
law enforcement agencies, especially the F.B.I., recently caught on in Great Britain owing to the spread of American media.
Federali : Spanish/Mexican Feds
Feebs : Often used derogatorily in the United States by municipal and state officers to refer the F.B.I. when they feel a possible jurisdictional confrontation.
(Name of city)'s Finest : Used in either admiration, or slightly derisive irony, in the US and UK. In New York City, the term has been adapted to other civil servants, such as "New York's Bravest" (the Fire Department
), "New York's Strongest" (the Department of Sanitation
), and "New York's Boldest" (the Department of Correction
).
First Bunch of Idiots : Referring to the F.B.I., the federal law enforcement arm of the United States.
Fist Bandit Teamsters : Refers to SWAT teams in Australia
Five-0 : used to indicate a police officer, Probably a reference to the TV show Hawaii Five-o
Flatfoot : A term that refers to the large amount of walking that a police officer would do, thus causing flat feet.
Flat Top: A term for a police car without lights on top.
Flic : French slang for a policeman. Commonly used in the form les flics.
Flik : Belgian slang for a policeman. The word is mainly used in the Flemish part of Belgium. There is also a known police series called "Flikken".
Force : UK, as in "police force".
Fruko : Turkish slang term for the police. Usage of this term reached its peak in the 1960s and 1970s among the university youth, especially those with a left-wing tendency or those otherwise inclined to partake in political demonstrations. The term is believed to derive from the pop brand Fruko, as the officers of Toplum Polisi (Community Police - a special police unit formed in 1965 to deal with public demonstrations and other politically influenced incidents -) riding on their vans in groups of 6 or more wearing their oval hard hats resembled pop bottles juxtaposed in a bottle container. (Plural: Frukolar)
Folks or Tha Folks : Southern Louisiana, rarely used.
Fuzz : First appeared in the 1920s, corruption of "force" (see above). The term was used in the title of Hot Fuzz
, a 2007 police-comedy film
.
Fuzzy Muff: Similar to the Fuzz, popularized by the comedian Sacha Baron Cohen in the Ali G show.
: US, slang, for Federal Bureau of Investigation
, or "government men." "The G" is sometimes used to refer to federal law enforcement collectively. Now used to refer to all law enforcement.
The Gaver or Gavvers : Alternatively Cockney rhyming slang
for the police—unknown origin—London
, or a Romani language
word for the police. (Rom
words are used in British English and Cockney.)
Also used in context with Gaver Wagons, mainly in the London
, Kent
and other parts of South-East of England.
Garda : The name of the Police in the Republic of Ireland. In Irish Gaelic- Guards.
Grass : Cockney (English) for a police informant: Grasshopper = Copper. An alternative suggestion is "Narc in the Park"
Ghoptay: (Nepali language
) As front hard part of the police peak cap is faced down, people would say Oi Ghoptay aayo, luka luka, meaning "hey cop is coming, hide it hide it" or simply Oi Ghoptay! Ghoptay! ("Hey cop! cop!"). The term is popular with teenagers and middle aged people but not with older people.
The Good Guys : US? A reference that the police act against criminality.
Gravel Road Cops or Grid Road Cops : Canada, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
"GRC" is abbreviation for "Gendarmerie Royale du Canada" French name for RCMP, who often work in rural settings with un-metalled roads.
Grouper Trooper : US, slang, an officer of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The Guards : Irish Police, from Garda Síochána
; (Garda Síochána na hÉireann - Irish for "Guard(ians) of the Peace of Ireland").
Gumshoe: US, derogatory, slang for detectives, who are ostensibly wearing soft-heeled shoes or Hush Puppy shoes so they can follow suspects without being noticed.
Gumball Machine : US, slang for a police car.
) )
Harness Bull : American
; a uniformed police officer. (Example: ...a large harness bull arrived in his archaic blue uniform with gun and star. (Philip K Dick, from Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
, 1968) )
The Heat : American
; putting the heat on someone. (Example: in the line What a field day for the heat (Stephen Stills, "For What It's Worth" from Buffalo Springfield
, 1967), Stills is referring to the police.)
Heavy or Heavies : Cockney rhyming slang
for the Flying Squad
, from the Heavy Mob, (see also Sweeney).
Hi-Po : American abbreviated slang referring to the Highway Patrol
.
Hobby-Bobby: Used in England to refer to Special Constables, who work for the police, wear similar uniforms, and have full police powers. The nickname implies such people are working as police officers as a hobby or pastime.
The Hook: American
: Refers to the hook used in cartoons to snatch someone from a stage.
Horseman : A Canadian
term referring to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
. Variation: Mounties.
Hot Dogs : a Chinese term referring to stationary traffic cops and guards who are standing in the sun all day.
.)
Jack The Bag : A notorious guard in West Limerick infamous for covering suspects face with a bag or pillowcase and beating them profusely with a phonebook (yellow-pages)
Jacks : A common term used for police in the UK and Australia
, derived from "John Darme" a joking Anglicization of "gendarme" (French for police officer) and then - per common usage - John becomes Jack (or, in this case, the plural "Jacks").
Jacks cockney rhyming slang- old bill, turned to jack and jill, turned to jacks
Jake : A common term used and created in New York City, New York.
Job, The : A reference amongst officers to being a member of a police force ("Don't shoot. I'm on the Job ....") or to the police department as an entity ("The Job said that officers would not be permitted to moonlight any more ...").
John Q. Law or Johnny Law : Used across the United States. Sometimes shortened to John or Johnny.
Johnny Hopper : Cockney rhyming slang
for copper (q.v.)
Jundanares, Jundos : Caló (gyspy) for Spanish Guardia Civil
Kesta : Finnish, derogatory. From the German "Gestapo
".
Keuf : French, slang, of uncertain origin (one meaning is given as being "flic" in reverse)
Khaki Kutta : India, derogatory, of police constables. Translates as Brown, or Khaki, Dog, from the colour of their uniform, which resembles the colour of feral dogs. Often used for crooked officers.
Kiberer : (sometimes Kiwerer) Austrian, esp. Viennese derogatory slang for police officers, or police in general ("Kiberei"). Most likely of yiddish origin, either "kewjus" (security) or "kiben" (to rant).
Kodiak (with a Kodak) : CB slang for a police car with a radar, see 'Bear'.
Krawężnik : Polish, from "curb", designating an officer patrolling the neighbourhood on foot.
Kyttä : Finnish, derogatory, of police officers. Translates as someone snooping, staring or ogling.
Law or The Law : Probably an abbreviation of the phrase "The long arm of the law" (suggesting that no matter how far they run, all criminals are eventually caught and prosecuted successfully).
Laws : A term originated in Houston, Texas
.
La Joda: Spanish slang for cops pronounced: "Hoda", which either can mean "Don't mess with me" or "don't fuck with me".
La Madama: Italian slang for police.
Lazies : Term used for police, but more often used for off-duty police officers.
LEO : International, acronym for "Law Enforcement Officer". A generalized term for police officers.
Lump
: A Greek slang. Refers to a police car
, because of their roof beacons (Greek Police cars don't have light bars).
Legawye (pl): Russian Легавые sg Легавый. Literally "gundog", "pointer". This was logo of Moscow Investigation Department in 1928.
Lids : A British term used in the police force to refer to uniformed officers, owing to their distinctive helmets.
Little Bears : Term used for local police of a city or town.
la Madama / le Madame : Italian, slang, meaning the State Police/the policemen. Featured also in Monicelli's movie "I soliti ignoti".
Maison poulaga : French, slang, derogatory, of police officers and police stations. Means roughly "henhouse".
Mama (Maman in the south): Indian. Derogatory. Hindi (Malayalam in south) word which means uncle. Sarcastic reference to a policeman.
Manaek : Israel, mostly for the Military Policemen.
Mapita : (Little map in spanish) for highway partol because of the little map displayed on the side of their units.
Mata: Singapore. Malay word for eye.
The Man
: English language, hippy slang, popular during the 1960s and 1970s during the anti-establishment
and anti-authoritarian
movements. Implies that police are a tool of the powerful "man" that is trying to keep others down.
Meat Wagon : UK. a police van
Meathead : Canadian. Military police, the term dates as far back as World War II, when other corps of the Canadian army also had "head" names. The name for the military police refers to perceived intellectual capacity. The Engineers were known as Thumper Heads, from a hand-held post driving tool called a thumper, and the Armoured corps as "Zipper Heads", from a helmet featuring a number of zippers to allow concurrent use of head phones.
Member : Canada. Internal slang, used in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to refer to fellow Mounties, in place of the usual "officer" or "constable" (or equivalent) in other police forces.
Ment : Russian (мент, pl menty менты). Origines of the word are the older Romanian border mounted guard part of uniform - the short windcoat named "ment".
Milico : Uruguay and Argentina. Coming from "militar", the Spanish word for military. Once police in those countries was a military institution, not a civil one.
Millicent : Nadsat
slang for Policemen, derived from the Russian "Militsiya" (Used in A Clockwork Orange
).
Mil'ton: (ru мильтон) rarely using in contemporary for militia men in Russia
Messing : Norwegian slang, the Norwegian word for "brass".
Monos : Spain, slang, derogatory, collective term in reference to the police officers' uniform
Mounties : Canada, colloquial, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
.
The Mustached Pagoda : Canada, slang, originally coined in Halifax, Nova Scotia. A surrealist term summoning from such noted philosophers as AJ Ayer and Josiah Royce
, intended as a confusing and somewhat ambiguous insult.
Mingara or sometimes Mingara Kaingara, from traveller slang especially Newark, Nottinghamshire, England.
Mizzder Berllizeban Badger. ("Mr Policeman Badger"): UK, literary. The constable in the Rupert Bear
stories by Mary Tourtel
.
Mr. Plod, P.C. Plod or Plodder : UK, slang, literary, (also used in Australia) from the Noddy books by Enid Blyton
, in which Mr. Plod
was the village policeman. "Plod" has also commonly been used by the British police themselves, as has its (generally disparaging) female equivalent "plonk".
Muppet : acronym of Most Useless Police Person Ever Trained
Murija : A Serbo-croatian
term for police, with a singular "murjak". True origin somewhat unknown.
Musgarers : gypsy or Romani term
Musora : in Russia plural unusing in other situations to "musor" (ru мусор) literally translated as "garbage". Origines - in obsolete abbreviation ru МУС (MUS) fully Московский уголовный сыск (Moskowskii ugolownyi sysk, Moskow criminal investigatings)
Nab Jones : Southern United States term for traffic police.
Nazi Stormtrooper : UK, relating to subjective observation that police act like German soldiers of the same name.
Nickers, Nicknicks : UK, uncommon British terms, being a pun on "knickers" (female underwear). As the term is spoken not written the silent "k" in knickers is not obvious. Derives from officers "nicking" a suspect, i.e. arresting them, and taking them to "the nick" i.e. the police station.
Night Jack : English police slang for a detective working night shift. Jack referring to the detective.
Nine: Used mainly in south Florida to describe officers. Called nine because they are said to come in packs, such as nine at a time
, Canada
to describe the Ontario Provincial Police
.
Old Bill : A term in use in London among other areas, inspiring the television series The Bill
. The origin of this nickname is obscure; according to the Metropolitan Police themselves, there are at least 13 different explanations.
One Time : A term, mostly used on the U.S. West Coast
, that has been given numerous explanations, including: the idea that if one is arrested, it only takes "one time" to be put away (convicted); and that looking at police officers "one time" is enough to garner their attention and invite harassment.
Other People : Used in J.J. Connolly's Layer Cake
to refer to the police.
, the national police force of Chile. In Costa Rica, a familiar term for police, loosely derogatory. The term comes from the nickname 'Paco' given to Francisco Calderón, a Security Minister in the 1940s.
Panda Car
: UK, a police car. Named because they were originally painted with large panels of black and white, or blue (usually light blue) and white.
Pandu : Indian constabulary (and not officers) were recruited mostly from village areas. Derived from popular Marathi movie 'Pandu Hawaldar' where the protagonist is a constable named as Pandu.
Pandur : Serbo-Croatian
derogatory term for a police officer (plural Pandurija, as a term for the police in general). In its origin, it was the Pandurs
, who served as the watchmen on the Austrian Military frontier.
Panser : Danish slang for a police officer. Widely used as a negative reference to the police in Denmark. Literally translated to the English word "panzer"
Paskalakki : Finnish, derogatory. Literally means "hat (full) of shit".
Pasma : Spain, slang, derogatory term for police
Pedal Bacon : UK, Police on Bicycles.
Peeler, Peelers : UK, slang, archaic, from Sir Robert Peel
(see 'Bobby'); it has largely disappeared in mainland Britain, is often used in Northern Ireland
, usually pejoratively. Canada, coloquial, refers to Peel Regional Police Service in Ontario, Canada. Considered derogatory as "peeler" is slang for a striptease dancer.
Penelope's : US. A slang word for the police term coined by the San Francisco Bay Area rap artist E-40.
Perp Walk : US. A slang term for dramatically parading an arrested subject (the perpetrator or "perp") in shackles before the press for no other purpose than for the photo-op. On frequent occasions, notorious subjects already in custody are taken out of jail and sent out the back door of a police station, only to be driven around the corner and then removed from the vehicle in order to convey an impression that the suspect is first arriving at the police station.
Pig
: This derogatory term was widespread during the 19th century, disappeared for a while, but reappeared during the 20th and 21st century. It became especially popular during the 1960s and 1970s in the underground hippie
and anti-establishment
culture. Now prevalent in many English-speaking countries. It has also been used in anti-authoritarian punk
and gangsta rap
circles. Oz magazine
showed a picture of a pig dressed as a policeman on a front cover.
Plastic Policemen : UK. A term used for Community Support Officers as they only have the same powers of arrest as civilians. Likening them to a toy policeman (fake)
Plain Brown Wrapper : Most commonly used by truck drivers over the CB radio, in reference to unmarked vehicles and plainclothes police officers, usually of local or state jurisdictions.
Pigtail : A slang term used when a police officer stops you or picks you up. "I picked up a pigtail"
Plastics : Colloquial term used by Australian state police to refer to the Australian Federal Police
.
Plod : An allusion to Mr Plod the Policeman
in Enid Blyton's Noddy stories for children, to plod meaning to walk doggedly and slowly with heavy steps. Also known as "PC Plod".
Plonk : Police slang for female officer
Po-key : Slang term for prison.
Polis : With a long 'o' and a short 'i', pronunciation used in Scotland. (coincidentally, this is the Swedish as well as Malaysian spelling of 'police')
Politzai: (ru pl полицаи sg полицай) - in Russia after renaming Militia to Police (ru Полиция Politzia) in March 2011. Origines - collaborationists regular troops on territories occupied by Nazi what Sowiet people called "полицаи" (Politzai, by German word "Polizei").
Po-po or Po : A term used commonly by North American youth and rap artists.
Porky or Porker : From the Porky Pig
cartoon and variation on "pig", usually specific to small town officers embodying the doughnut stereotype, "porker" variant may relate to "copper".
Poulet : French, translates as "chicken", derogatory. As in, Q: What do you get when the police station catches fire? A: "poulet rôti" (roast chicken).
Prahare : Nepalese for police
Psy : Polish for "dogs", singular - "pies", squad cars or police vans are often called "suki", which means "bitches", singular - "suka", because there are dogs inside.
Puerco : Mexican, derogatory, slang. Spanish for pig.
Purk : Norwegian, derogatory, Norwegian for "sow".
La Pula: Italian and Italian-American slang. Shortened form of polizia.
PC : Abbreviation of the rank "Police Constable". Also used by the Ontario Provincial Police to abbreviate "Provincial Constable". Constable
is used in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe, & most other ex-British Empire countries.
PW : Police Woman. Sometimes considered derogatory or merely impolite. See also WPC
Ratazanas (plural) : Used in Portuguese language for police officers, meaning rat
s.
Rati: Argentinean slang term for police officers derived from 'rata' (rat).
RC's : Short for RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police).
Rennleitung : Use in German language as slang term for the Autobahn highway police, roughly translates to "racing officials"
Rez Cop : Derogatory term to describe a Police/Peace Officer employed on or for an Indian Reservation/First Nations or Tribal Police. It erroneously implies they have less value and/or authorities than "off rez" police. To self describe as a "rez cop" would be to vulgarly separate oneself from other police services
Rollers : An American term believed to have originated in the San Francisco Bay Area. Also a connection for when police car lights are turned on because they roll in circles.
Raddies : UK
Roussin : French
Rozzers : An amusing British term for the police. Used by James May (Top Gear) on his cut-price Police car. More commonly used in comedy TV and Film.
Screw: Technically, a slang term for a prison guard and not for a police officer.
Scuffers : An old Liverpudlian term, which came to prominence in the 1960s Merseyside-set BBC television series Z-Cars
.
Schmig(s), Schmigglers : A variation on Pig, originated in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the early 1980s.
Schmitt : Used in France, origin unknown (possibly based on German).
Shades: Used in west and south west Ireland. Derived from the Irish (Gaelic) term 'Se d'og', pronounced Shay Dowgs, meaning 'Little Johns' originally used to describe the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) - British Army soldiers in Ireland were called 'Johns', so the British controlled police force (the RIC) were called 'Little Johns'. "Shay Dowgs' became shortened to 'Shades'.
Skowtu : Used in the Netherlands, origin from Suriname, which used to be part of the Netherlands.
Slaktarbussen : Swedish slang for police van, usually referred to riot police vans. Literally "Butchers van" .
Skel : A criminal, typically a drug addict who is extremely thin as the result of malnutrition as he/she binges on narcotics and other drugs.
Smokey : A term from the CB Radio
fad of the 1970s. See "Bear", above. Smokey Bears are usually those that belong to a Highway Patrol
or State Police
agency in the United States
.
Smurfs : 1. Used in Greece and Poland. Because the blue colour of police uniforms is like the old National Benzole advertising characters, the Smurfs.
Snippers : An African-American term used mostly in North America.
Snut : A slang used in Norway and Sweden, coming from "snute" which is "nose on a dog" describing that the police "sniffs"
Soggies : Australian term for officers of the Special Operations Group.
Squealers : A reference to the noise a pig makes. In the UK, squealer, or grass, is used to denote someone who informs on their criminal confederates.
'SS RUC' : A term used in Northern Ireland by the Republicanist/Catholic Community particularly during a riot. SS from the German secret police and RUC from the former name of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (Now Police Service Northern Ireland (PSNI)) Used as many perceived the police were against them for their beliefs, but mainly because they supported terrorism against the UK.
State boy: A US state trooper. Usually used in the midwest.
Staties : Refers to State Troopers, used throughout New England
Stench : UK and Australia - similar to filth
Strisser : Danish slang
Strømer : Danish slang
Suicide by Cop : American. Occurs when a suspect behaves in a manner that provokes or compels the police kill him, such as by holding hostages or threatening officers or civilians with a weapon.
Suits : Members of the Metropolitan Police CID as referred to by their uniformed colleagues.
Super Troopers : Became a common name in Vermont for police in that state after the release of the movie Super Troopers
.
Sün : Hedgehog Hungarian slang, during the 2009 protest against the Hungarian Government, policemen used a formation called hedgehog (sün in Hungarian). This comical situation became a widespread meme in the country and eventually policemen were given the name "sün".
Sweeney : Cockney rhyming slang
for the Metropolitan Police's Flying Squad, from Sweeney Todd
, inspiring the television series The Sweeney
, (see also Heavy).
Swine : Comes from pig (see above).
The Thin Blue Line
: Used to describe the role of the police in being the barrier between civilized society and chaos, inspiring a UK TV sitcom
and 2 documentaries
of the same name. This led to policemen involved in entrapping gays being ironically described as "The Thin Blue Jeans".
Thulla: Northern-Indian/Pakistani Hindi/Urdu term for a cop with a baton (known locally as a "laathi").
Tinned Pig: derogatory term in some areas of southern England to refer to police in police cars.
Tira: Mexican slang for police car or policeman.
Tira: Brazilian slang for policeman.
Tit-Heads or Tits: Rarely used derogative British term for uniformed police officers originating in the shape of traditional UK police custodian helmet
worn by patrolling (male) officers which are or were a similar shape to a large female breast - as in the phrase (to a policeman) "take the tit off your head" meaning "relax" or "imagine you are not on duty".
Tombo: Largely used in Perú, and in some parts of Colombia to call police officers. Etymological origin its based in an inversion of the Spanish word for button. In the early twentieth century the uniforms of the Peruvian police officers had very big buttons. The word is "botón" in Spanish. The thiefs inverted the word "Ton-bo". You could see that the inversion is "Tonbo", with an "n", and not "tombo" with "m", but in Spanish an "n" cannot precede a "b".
Troll: A term coined in South Florida (Palm Beach County). Made famous by the song "Troll Down".
Txacurra: Dog in Basque referring to police officers, similar to the use of 'dog' in English.
Twig Pig: Forest Ranger/Woods Cop
Twinrova : Rarely used in reference to police cars bearing red and blue lights on top of the car (only in Victoria, Australia
and Los Angeles, California
).
Tyre Biters : A term typically used for country police officers because of their habit of being involved with frequent car chases.
Untouchables: A term often used in Scotland for a mobile squad of uniformed Police, term originates from the 1960s US TV series.
Utzer: German, slang, used e.g. in Upper Franconia
, literally means "teaser"
Unipo: Short for University Police, used as a derogatory term towards campus police in some areas of the US
Whoop-Whoop : US, slang, from the Southern States & New York City, in reference to a patrol car's siren.
Woodentops : UK, derogatory, used by plain-clothes officers in reference to the uniformed branch. Possibly a reference to the 1950s children's TV series The Woodentops
, declining use.
Woolly-backs : UK, derogatory, used by plain-clothes officers in reference to the uniformed branch.
Wasps : UK, derogatory, from the recent adoption of Safety Yellow jackets by various Constabularies for uniformed officers in various roles, &, as with Bluebottles, from the 'swarming' of officers at an incident. Also used in Washington state, United States in reference to the Washington State Patrol.
.
Zebra : US. Reference to the black and white color of police vehicles.
Zetas : Spain. Reference to the Citroën ZX, in common use by Police patrol units in Spain in the 1980s and 1990s
Police officer
A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
s exist. The terms are also applied by inmates toward uniformed prison staff. These are often used by the public rather than the police themselves. Many are considered offensive
The precise sociological
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
and etymological
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
provenance of some of these terms is significant:
#
5-O (Five-Oh) : US, slang, for police officers and/or a warning that police are approaching. The origin is from the original television series Hawaii Five-OHawaii Five-O
Hawaii Five-O is an American police procedural drama series produced by CBS Productions and Leonard Freeman. Set in Hawaii, the show originally aired for twelve seasons from 1968 to 1980, and continues in reruns. The show featured a fictional state police unit run by Detective Steve McGarrett,...
. It represents that Hawaii was the fiftieth state.
5's, The : New York City Police. Reference to Police followup Form DD-5, which is standard documentation filed by officers and detectives during active cases.
A
Aina : Swedish, slang for police in some sociolects. From the Turkish Aynasız.Accoutrements : British police terminology for a police constables personal equipment. At signing-on parade, the procedure was to give the order 'show your accoutrements', at which the constables would produce their handcuffs, truncheons, whistles and notebooks for inspection. This was common practice up to the early 1990s. As officers now carry more equipment for their protection, having every officer produce this at the beginning of a shift would be impracticable. Up until the introduction of police radios officers carried a whistle, (to signal to officers that they required assistance, and to attract the attention of the public) and 3 Old Pence so that, whilst on patrol, the officer could ring the police station from a public phone kiosk. (This amount would, of course, have varied according to the minimum cost of a call from a phone-box.)
Asfalt Kovboyu (Asphalt Cowboy) : Turkish, slang, relates the modern police officers to cowboys. Police officers are called cowboys in Turkey, due to their lawless acts.
Aynasız : The most common slang word to address a police officer in Turkish. The word literally means "mirrorless", and its attribution to a police officer suggests that a cop is perceived as someone who constantly accuses others of vice, whereas he himself has no mirror to see his own vice. It is the semi-official equivalent of the English word "pig" (only when used to refer to the police), and commonly used when translating English-spoken movies into Turkish. Pronunciation is roughly I-nuh-suzz. (Plural: Aynasızlar)
B
Babylon : Jamaican, colloquial, for establishment systems, often applied to the police. Derived from the Rastafari movementRastafari movement
The Rastafari movement or Rasta is a new religious movement that arose in the 1930s in Jamaica, which at the time was a country with a predominantly Christian culture where 98% of the people were the black descendants of slaves. Its adherents worship Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia , as God...
.
Bacon : US. Derived from pigs; often used in the structure "I smell bacon" to ridicule and deride the presence of an officer when even barely out of earshot.
Bacon sandwich, or Jam sandwich : UK, slang, derogatory, for traffic car, from the colour-scheme, which is generally white, with a longitudinal red, or red and yellow, stripe on each side. (This colour-scheme is dated, modern markings are somewhat different.)
Bait : UK. A term meaning the police or doing something that will get you caught.
Barney : US, term coined after Barney Fife from The Andy Griffith Show
The Andy Griffith Show
The Andy Griffith Show is an American sitcom first televised by CBS between October 3, 1960, and April 1, 1968. Andy Griffith portrays a widowed sheriff in the fictional small community of Mayberry, North Carolina...
.
Batsi :Greece, (sing. Batsos, in Greek: Μπάτσος), derogatory, the most common slang word for Greek police officers. Literally means punch or slap, derived from the widespread police brutality (and the according mentality), especially when they used to serve oppressive and authoritarian governments in the recent past. The most common anti-police moto is: Batsi, gourounia, dolofoni (cops, pigs, killers), shout en masse in many demonstrations.
Battle Taxi : UK (Liverpool) slang for police van or minibus used to carry a number of officers to the scene of an incident and a similar vehicle used to carry prisoners.
Batty Squad Bike : UK (London) offensive slang relating to police motorcyclists.
The Bay : US, slang term for Eastern Long Islanders. Derived from the Bay Constable and it is used when someone thinks it's a cop, but it's just the Constable.
Bear : US, short for "Smokey Bear
Smokey Bear
Smokey Bear is a mascot of the United States Forest Service created to educate the public about the dangers of forest fires. An advertising campaign featuring Smokey was created in 1944 with the slogan, "Smokey Says – Care Will Prevent 9 out of 10 Forest Fires". Smokey Bear's later slogan,...
" in reference to the hats worn by some law enforcement officers similar to the ranger hat
Campaign hat
A campaign cover is a broad-brimmed felt or straw hat, with a high crown, pinched symmetrically at the four corners .It is associated with the New Zealand Army, the Royal Canadian...
worn by "Smokey Bear". "Bear bait" is a reference to speeders, who may draw the attention of the police and allow slightly slower traffic to exceed the speed limit in their wake. "Bear in the Air" is a reference to a police chopper. "Bear in a plain brown wrapper" is a reference to an unmarked patrol car.. "Care Bear" is slang for a patrol officer in the vicinity of a construction zone with lights on to encourage motorist to slow down. "Full Grown Bear" refers to state patrol officers exclusively, where the term bear can refer to any police officer.
Bängen : Swedish slang term for the police. Originally an old Swedish word for devil, from Romani
Romani language
Romani or Romany, Gypsy or Gipsy is any of several languages of the Romani people. They are Indic, sometimes classified in the "Central" or "Northwestern" zone, and sometimes treated as a branch of their own....
Beng with the same meaning.
Berry : Originating from blueberry, referring to the blue uniform most officers wear.
Boxer briefs
Boxer briefs
Boxer briefs are a type of men's undergarment which are long in the leg, like boxer shorts but tighter-fitting, like briefs; a hybrid between the two main types of male underwear in Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and the United States. Depending on the manufacturer, boxer briefs may also be...
: Greek slang. Refers to the police car
Police car
A police car is a ground vehicle used by police, to assist with their duties in patrolling and responding to incidents. Typical uses of a police car include transportation for officers to reach the scene of an incident quickly, to transport criminal suspects, or to patrol an area, while providing a...
. It originates from a joke that refers to the police car as such, since "it carries two testicles inside", in reference to the police officers.
The Big Big Big Big : Originating in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Referring to an over-inflated sense of power.
Big Blue Machine : A somewhat derisive term by smaller independent Municipal Police Services in Ontario to describe the perception the Ontario Provincial Police, or any other large regional police service "assimilating" (assuming policing duties and taking on the staff and resources of) smaller police services. The OPP and other services thus extend the ribbing in various jokes derived from the fictional Borg
Borg (Star Trek)
The Borg are a fictional pseudo-race of cybernetic organisms depicted in the Star Trek universe associated with Star Trek.Whereas cybernetics are used by other races in the science fiction world to repair bodily damage and birth defects, the Borg use enforced cybernetic enhancement as a means of...
of Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
.
Bill : see Old Bill "The Bill" is the title of two decades of TV soap opera popular in the UK, based in a fictional London borough.
Bizzies : Common Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
slang term for the police, it was invented as the police were always too "busy" to help. Also that the police are seen as "busy-bodies" i.e. that they ask too many questions.
Black and White: US, usually refers to a police car
Police car
A police car is a ground vehicle used by police, to assist with their duties in patrolling and responding to incidents. Typical uses of a police car include transportation for officers to reach the scene of an incident quickly, to transport criminal suspects, or to patrol an area, while providing a...
, but also extends to the police themselves.
Black Rat : a slang term for a (UK) traffic officer. Based on the idea that traffic officers will happily prosecute other officers if caught breaking the law. Similarly to the way a black rat will eat its own young.
Blue Heelers : This is a term used in Australia and is related to a breed of dog, the Australian Cattle Dog
Australian Cattle Dog
The Australian Cattle Dog is a breed of herding dog originally developed in Australia for droving cattle over long distances across rough terrain. In the 19th century, New South Wales cattle farmer Thomas Hall crossed the dogs used by drovers in his parents' home county, Northumberland, with...
. It reflects the personality and appearance (blue uniform) of a police officer. Its use has been popularised by the Australian police drama series Blue Heelers
Blue Heelers
Blue Heelers is an Australian police drama series which depicted the lives of police officers stationed at the fictional Mount Thomas police station in a small town in Victoria.- Overview :...
.
Blue Meanies : This is a 1960s hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
slang term for the police, it was used in the Beatles film the Yellow Submarine, although many viewers may not have realized its significance. First used during the Free Speech Movement
Free Speech Movement
The Free Speech Movement was a student protest which took place during the 1964–1965 academic year on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley under the informal leadership of students Mario Savio, Brian Turner, Bettina Aptheker, Steve Weissman, Art Goldberg, Jackie Goldberg, and...
about the Alameda County Sheriff's Office
Alameda County Sheriff's Office
The Alameda County Sheriff's Office is a law enforcement agency serving Alameda County, California. The ACSO is accredited through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies , the American Correctional Association , National Commission on Correctional Health Care and the...
.
Bluebottle : UK, an archaic derogatory term for policeman that may have derived from Cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang
Rhyming slang is a form of phrase construction in the English language and is especially prevalent in dialectal British English from the East End of London; hence the alternative name, Cockney rhyming slang...
and from the action of police when responding to a serious incident, as "swarming like Bluebottles
Blue bottle fly
The blue bottle fly or bottlebee is a common blow-fly found in most areas of the world and is the type species for the genus Calliphora.-Description:...
", or blowflies. ('Bottle' is an abbreviation of 'bottle and glass', which is rhyming slang for 'arse', as in the phrase; 'lost your bottle', for having lost one's nerve). (See also Bottles).
Blue steel : A slang term used by officers to describe a robotic police aid (usually a bomb disarming or disposal robot), or a police-issue side arm.
Blålys : Norwegian term, meaning Blue lights, referring to the blue emergency light on police cars
Bobby: UK, derived from the British Home Secretary, Sir Robert Peel
Robert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 December 1834 to 8 April 1835, and again from 30 August 1841 to 29 June 1846...
(Bobby being a nickname for Robert) the founder of the Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
. Occurs in fixed phrases e.g. "bobby on the beat", "village bobby". Commonly used as a name of an officer in a helmet walking the streets. Special Constables are sometimes referred to as "Hobby Bobbies".
Boys in blue : in reference to the blue uniform.
Bull : An American term usually used to refer to railroad police but may also indicate regular police officers. Also used in German ("Bulle") as a widespread insult for the police officer, sometimes in conjunction with the German word for pig "Bullenschwein".
Bully, Bullymen or Bullyman : Old aboriginal slang for the state police in Queensland Australia.
Buttons : US, used in a black neighborhood, referring to more-traditional police uniforms with brass buttons.
Boton : Uruguay and Argentina. As in several other countries, police uniforms had big badges and buttons.
Bronze : Australian reference
Byling : Old Swedish slang for patrolling officers. The word is of uncertain origins and rarely used nowadays. Svenska Akademiens ordbok
Boys- Mostly use in Baltimore,Md to refer to the cops.
C
Campo: (Pronounced Cam-poe) Is a term used to describe Police/Peace officers whose jurisdiction is a university/college. It is a combination of the title Campus Police. Campo can be used in admiration or as an insult depending on the context. Most commonly used in North America.Cana : Argentinean slang for police officers and lunfardo
Lunfardo
Lunfardo is a dialect originated and developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the lower classes in Buenos Aires and the surrounding Gran Buenos Aires, and from there spread to other cities nearby, such as Rosario and Montevideo, cities with similar socio-cultural situations...
term for jail.
Cinder Dick : An old term for railroad police detective, derived from the detective having to walk on the railroad ballast rock, also known as "cinders".
Cinzentinhos: Mozambique, in reference to the officers' gray uniform. One literal translation of the word would be "Little Grays"
City Kitty : local police, such as a city or township.
City Pigs : Used by the Zodiac Killer in regard to the police around the San Francisco Bay Area.
Cherry Toppers, Cherry Tops, or Cherries : Often used in reference to police cars which in some nations bear red lights on the top of the car. See Cherry top (slang)
Cherry top (slang)
Cherry top is American slang which refers to a specific type of Police car with only red rotating emergency vehicle lighting mounted to the roof. The term originated in the 1960s, which is when these red rotating "beacon" lights were common...
.
Chickens : Name used for police agents in the Netherlands.
Chimps : UK slang term for Community police officers, Acronym for Completely Hopeless In Most Policing Situations
Chipper : California Highway Patrol Motorcycle Cop. From the show "Chips"
Cocos: Scottish, rhyming slang for coco pops (the cops)
Collar: American and British slang for when an officer catches or apprehends a suspect (collared/having your collar felt). Also used in bravado between officers 'good collar' meaning good arrest or stop.
Cop or Copper : While commonly believed to be an acronym for Constable On Patrol, the term refers to "one who captures or snatches". This word first appeared in the early 18th century, and can be matched with the word "cap", which has the same meaning and whose etymology
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
can be traced to the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
word 'capere'. (The word retains this meaning in other contexts: teenagers "cop a feel" on a date, and they have also been known to "cop an attitude".) Variation: Copper. It is also believed that the term Copper was the original, unshortened word, popularly believed to represent the copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
badges American officers used to wear at the time of origin, but in fact probably used in Britain to mean "someone who cops" long before this. It is also believed to come from the Latin word 'Corpore' meaning body, i.e. a body of men.
Copcycles : A slang term for police officers on bicycles.
Cossa : Sinhala. pronounced 'Cos-sa', Derived from 'Constable' or its localized version 'Costha-pal'.
County Brownie : A slang term for a county officer because of their brown uniforms and cars.
County Mountie : Term for the county sheriff and deputies.
Cozzers: A term used in Great Britain in order to describe or talk about police officers.
Crackers: A slang term for the police in Florida especially in south Florida
Crimefighter: Term for a policeman on a particular crime fighting spree.
Crusher : Of unknown origin but may have come from the nickname used for the Royal Navy Regulating Branch
Royal Navy Regulating Branch
The Royal Navy Police is the Service Police branch of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines. Members of the RNP enforce law, discipline, and maintain order as outlined in the Armed Forces Act 2006....
.
Cuntstubble : Over emphasising of the Police rank "Constable".
Cheese: The Baltimore police force to criminals (2011)
Cheese Van: Out dated South African slang for Police Vehicles, based on the vehicles being bright yellow.
D
D (plural "D's") : (Australia) - presumably short for "detective".Danthay: (Nepal) - A term to describe a cop with a baton (known locally as a "danda").
Demon (plural Demons) : (New Zealand) - A term to describe police "detectives".
Dibble or The Dibble : Arises from the police officer in the Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
animated programme Top Cat
Top Cat
Top Cat is a Hanna-Barbera prime time animated television series which ran from September 27, 1961 to April 18, 1962 for a run of 30 episodes on the ABC network. Reruns are played on Cartoon Network's classic animation network Boomerang.-History:...
. Most commonly used in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
.
Dicks: Slang for detectives. Apparently originally coined in Canada and brought south by rumrunners during Prohibition. The fictional comic strip character Dick Tracy
Dick Tracy
Dick Tracy is a comic strip featuring Dick Tracy, a hard-hitting, fast-shooting and intelligent police detective. Created by Chester Gould, the strip made its debut on October 4, 1931, in the Detroit Mirror. It was distributed by the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndicate...
was given the first name of "Dick" in token of its being a slang expression for "detective."
Do-do nutters or The Do-dos : Arises from the stereotype of police officers eating donuts.
Dogs: used in many European languages as an insulting term for police similar to pig in English
DRC or The DRC : Dirty Rotten Cop(per).
Ducks and Geese : Cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang
Rhyming slang is a form of phrase construction in the English language and is especially prevalent in dialectal British English from the East End of London; hence the alternative name, Cockney rhyming slang...
for police.
Doughnut Commando: Arises when rookie or physically fit cops describe older or out of shape colleague.
Doughnut Patrol: Derived from the video game "Godfather 2".
Doughnut Shop: Because the stereotypical cop will be seen eating doughnuts.
Doughnut Squad: Derived from an episode of 'The Sopranos'.; Tony Soprano is in talks with Ron Zellman & he refers to the police as 'The Doughnut Squad'.
E
Ecilop : AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
for police reversed as seen through rear vision mirror. Motorway (freeway) patrol cars have police written backwards on the front - so it can be read normally in a rear view mirror.
Evel Knievel : Used by Australian truck drivers to describe police motorcyclists; from famed stunt rider Evel Knievel
Evel Knievel
Evel Knievel , born Robert Craig Knievel, was an American daredevil and entertainer. In his career he attempted over 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps between 1965 and 1980, and in 1974, a failed jump across Snake River Canyon in the Skycycle X-2, a steam-powered rocket...
. Motorcycle cop as described by Jerry Reed in the movie Smokey & The Bandit.
F
Fakabát : Wooden coat Hungarian slang. After the wooden guard posts placed on street corners.Farbror Blå : Uncle Blue Swedish slang, blue due to their appearance (color of their uniform). The nickname originates from the children's book "Aunt Green, Aunt Brown and Aunt Lavender", by Elsa Beskow
Elsa Beskow
Elsa Beskow was a Swedish author and illustrator of children's books...
, where "Uncle Blue" is one of the characters.
Feds : Usually used in the United States to refer to higher federal
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
law enforcement agencies, especially the F.B.I., recently caught on in Great Britain owing to the spread of American media.
Federali : Spanish/Mexican Feds
Feebs : Often used derogatorily in the United States by municipal and state officers to refer the F.B.I. when they feel a possible jurisdictional confrontation.
(Name of city)'s Finest : Used in either admiration, or slightly derisive irony, in the US and UK. In New York City, the term has been adapted to other civil servants, such as "New York's Bravest" (the Fire Department
New York City Fire Department
The New York City Fire Department or the Fire Department of the City of New York has the responsibility for protecting the citizens and property of New York City's five boroughs from fires and fire hazards, providing emergency medical services, technical rescue as well as providing first response...
), "New York's Strongest" (the Department of Sanitation
New York City Department of Sanitation
The New York City Department of Sanitation, or DSNY, is a uniformed force of unionized sanitation workers in New York City. Their responsibilities include garbage collection, recycling collection, street cleaning, and snow removal...
), and "New York's Boldest" (the Department of Correction
New York City Department of Correction
The New York City Department of Correction is responsible for New York City's inmates, housing the majority of them on Rikers Island. It employs 9,500 uniformed officers and 1,400 civilian staff, has 543 vehicles, and processes over 100,000 new inmates every year, retaining a population of inmates...
).
First Bunch of Idiots : Referring to the F.B.I., the federal law enforcement arm of the United States.
Fist Bandit Teamsters : Refers to SWAT teams in Australia
Five-0 : used to indicate a police officer, Probably a reference to the TV show Hawaii Five-o
Flatfoot : A term that refers to the large amount of walking that a police officer would do, thus causing flat feet.
Flat Top: A term for a police car without lights on top.
Flic : French slang for a policeman. Commonly used in the form les flics.
Flik : Belgian slang for a policeman. The word is mainly used in the Flemish part of Belgium. There is also a known police series called "Flikken".
Force : UK, as in "police force".
Fruko : Turkish slang term for the police. Usage of this term reached its peak in the 1960s and 1970s among the university youth, especially those with a left-wing tendency or those otherwise inclined to partake in political demonstrations. The term is believed to derive from the pop brand Fruko, as the officers of Toplum Polisi (Community Police - a special police unit formed in 1965 to deal with public demonstrations and other politically influenced incidents -) riding on their vans in groups of 6 or more wearing their oval hard hats resembled pop bottles juxtaposed in a bottle container. (Plural: Frukolar)
Folks or Tha Folks : Southern Louisiana, rarely used.
Fuzz : First appeared in the 1920s, corruption of "force" (see above). The term was used in the title of Hot Fuzz
Hot Fuzz
Hot Fuzz is a 2007 British action dark comedy film written by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, and starring Pegg and Nick Frost. The three had previously worked together on the 2004 film Shaun of the Dead as well as the television series Spaced...
, a 2007 police-comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
.
Fuzzy Muff: Similar to the Fuzz, popularized by the comedian Sacha Baron Cohen in the Ali G show.
G
G-ManG-Man (slang)
G-Man is a slang term for Special agents of the United States Government. It is specifically used as a term for a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent....
: US, slang, for Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
, or "government men." "The G" is sometimes used to refer to federal law enforcement collectively. Now used to refer to all law enforcement.
The Gaver or Gavvers : Alternatively Cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang
Rhyming slang is a form of phrase construction in the English language and is especially prevalent in dialectal British English from the East End of London; hence the alternative name, Cockney rhyming slang...
for the police—unknown origin—London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, or a Romani language
Romani language
Romani or Romany, Gypsy or Gipsy is any of several languages of the Romani people. They are Indic, sometimes classified in the "Central" or "Northwestern" zone, and sometimes treated as a branch of their own....
word for the police. (Rom
Romani language
Romani or Romany, Gypsy or Gipsy is any of several languages of the Romani people. They are Indic, sometimes classified in the "Central" or "Northwestern" zone, and sometimes treated as a branch of their own....
words are used in British English and Cockney.)
Also used in context with Gaver Wagons, mainly in the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
and other parts of South-East of England.
Garda : The name of the Police in the Republic of Ireland. In Irish Gaelic- Guards.
Grass : Cockney (English) for a police informant: Grasshopper = Copper. An alternative suggestion is "Narc in the Park"
Ghoptay: (Nepali language
Nepali language
Nepali or Nepalese is a language in the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family.It is the official language and de facto lingua franca of Nepal and is also spoken in Bhutan, parts of India and parts of Myanmar...
) As front hard part of the police peak cap is faced down, people would say Oi Ghoptay aayo, luka luka, meaning "hey cop is coming, hide it hide it" or simply Oi Ghoptay! Ghoptay! ("Hey cop! cop!"). The term is popular with teenagers and middle aged people but not with older people.
The Good Guys : US? A reference that the police act against criminality.
Gravel Road Cops or Grid Road Cops : Canada, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
"GRC" is abbreviation for "Gendarmerie Royale du Canada" French name for RCMP, who often work in rural settings with un-metalled roads.
Grouper Trooper : US, slang, an officer of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The Guards : Irish Police, from Garda Síochána
Garda Síochána
, more commonly referred to as the Gardaí , is the police force of Ireland. The service is headed by the Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Government. Its headquarters are located in the Phoenix Park in Dublin.- Terminology :...
; (Garda Síochána na hÉireann - Irish for "Guard(ians) of the Peace of Ireland").
Gumshoe: US, derogatory, slang for detectives, who are ostensibly wearing soft-heeled shoes or Hush Puppy shoes so they can follow suspects without being noticed.
Gumball Machine : US, slang for a police car.
H
Hack : A prison guard (Example: Richie: The other one, Mark Mack, is already dead. Besides, why should the hacks listen to me now? I say Schillinger did it, they say prove it. I have no proof. (Richie from the HBO Series OZOz (TV series)
Oz is an American television drama series created by Tom Fontana, who also wrote or co-wrote all of the series' 56 episodes . It was the first one-hour dramatic television series to be produced by premium cable network HBO. Oz premiered on July 12, 1997 and ran for six seasons...
) )
Harness Bull : American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
; a uniformed police officer. (Example: ...a large harness bull arrived in his archaic blue uniform with gun and star. (Philip K Dick, from Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is a science fiction novel by American writer Philip K. Dick first published in 1968. The main plot follows Rick Deckard, a bounty hunter of androids, while the secondary plot follows John Isidore, a man of sub-normal intelligence who befriends some of the...
, 1968) )
The Heat : American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
; putting the heat on someone. (Example: in the line What a field day for the heat (Stephen Stills, "For What It's Worth" from Buffalo Springfield
Buffalo Springfield (album)
Buffalo Springfield is the self-titled debut album by folk rock band Buffalo Springfield, released in late 1966. It was originally released in both mono and stereo versions as Atco 33-200, but when the single "For What It's Worth" became a hit, the album was re-released as Atco 33-200A and added...
, 1967), Stills is referring to the police.)
Heavy or Heavies : Cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang
Rhyming slang is a form of phrase construction in the English language and is especially prevalent in dialectal British English from the East End of London; hence the alternative name, Cockney rhyming slang...
for the Flying Squad
Flying Squad
The Flying Squad is a branch of the Specialist Crime Directorate, within London's Metropolitan Police Service. The Squad's purpose is to investigate commercial armed robberies, along with the prevention and investigation of other serious armed crime...
, from the Heavy Mob, (see also Sweeney).
Hi-Po : American abbreviated slang referring to the Highway Patrol
Highway patrol
A highway patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is primarily concerned with such duties.Duties of highway patrols or traffic...
.
Hobby-Bobby: Used in England to refer to Special Constables, who work for the police, wear similar uniforms, and have full police powers. The nickname implies such people are working as police officers as a hobby or pastime.
The Hook: American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
: Refers to the hook used in cartoons to snatch someone from a stage.
Horseman : A Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
term referring to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
. Variation: Mounties.
Hot Dogs : a Chinese term referring to stationary traffic cops and guards who are standing in the sun all day.
I
Irish Mafia : Slang for New York Police Department, traditionally staffed largely by Irish-Americans.J
Bacon sandwich, or Jam sandwich [or Jam Sambo]: UK, police traffic car, from the now largely obsolete historical colour-scheme - an overall white vehicle, with a longitudinal red, or red and yellow, stripe on each side. "Sambo" is a slang for sandwich. (Though this colour-scheme is dated. Most services have moved, or are in the process of moving, to a checkered Battenburg markingsBattenburg markings
Battenburg refers to a pattern of high-visibility markings used to maximise conspicuity, primarily used on vehicles of the emergency services, but also in other applications such as uniforms...
.)
Jack The Bag : A notorious guard in West Limerick infamous for covering suspects face with a bag or pillowcase and beating them profusely with a phonebook (yellow-pages)
Jacks : A common term used for police in the UK and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, derived from "John Darme" a joking Anglicization of "gendarme" (French for police officer) and then - per common usage - John becomes Jack (or, in this case, the plural "Jacks").
Jacks cockney rhyming slang- old bill, turned to jack and jill, turned to jacks
Jake : A common term used and created in New York City, New York.
Job, The : A reference amongst officers to being a member of a police force ("Don't shoot. I'm on the Job ....") or to the police department as an entity ("The Job said that officers would not be permitted to moonlight any more ...").
John Q. Law or Johnny Law : Used across the United States. Sometimes shortened to John or Johnny.
Johnny Hopper : Cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang
Rhyming slang is a form of phrase construction in the English language and is especially prevalent in dialectal British English from the East End of London; hence the alternative name, Cockney rhyming slang...
for copper (q.v.)
Jundanares, Jundos : Caló (gyspy) for Spanish Guardia Civil
K
K-9 : Police patrols using dogs, or the dogs themselves ("He is a K-9 patrol officer.") Homophone of "canine".Kesta : Finnish, derogatory. From the German "Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
".
Keuf : French, slang, of uncertain origin (one meaning is given as being "flic" in reverse)
Khaki Kutta : India, derogatory, of police constables. Translates as Brown, or Khaki, Dog, from the colour of their uniform, which resembles the colour of feral dogs. Often used for crooked officers.
Kiberer : (sometimes Kiwerer) Austrian, esp. Viennese derogatory slang for police officers, or police in general ("Kiberei"). Most likely of yiddish origin, either "kewjus" (security) or "kiben" (to rant).
Kodiak (with a Kodak) : CB slang for a police car with a radar, see 'Bear'.
Krawężnik : Polish, from "curb", designating an officer patrolling the neighbourhood on foot.
Kyttä : Finnish, derogatory, of police officers. Translates as someone snooping, staring or ogling.
L
Labdick : Edinburgh, UK slang for policeman. Contraction of "Lothian And Borders" (regional police force) + dick.Law or The Law : Probably an abbreviation of the phrase "The long arm of the law" (suggesting that no matter how far they run, all criminals are eventually caught and prosecuted successfully).
Laws : A term originated in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
.
La Joda: Spanish slang for cops pronounced: "Hoda", which either can mean "Don't mess with me" or "don't fuck with me".
La Madama: Italian slang for police.
Lazies : Term used for police, but more often used for off-duty police officers.
LEO : International, acronym for "Law Enforcement Officer". A generalized term for police officers.
Lump
Swelling (medical)
In medical parlance, swelling is the transient enlargement or protuberance in the body and may include tumors. According to cause, it may be congenital, traumatic, inflammatory, neoplastic or miscellaneous....
: A Greek slang. Refers to a police car
Police car
A police car is a ground vehicle used by police, to assist with their duties in patrolling and responding to incidents. Typical uses of a police car include transportation for officers to reach the scene of an incident quickly, to transport criminal suspects, or to patrol an area, while providing a...
, because of their roof beacons (Greek Police cars don't have light bars).
Legawye (pl): Russian Легавые sg Легавый. Literally "gundog", "pointer". This was logo of Moscow Investigation Department in 1928.
Lids : A British term used in the police force to refer to uniformed officers, owing to their distinctive helmets.
Little Bears : Term used for local police of a city or town.
M
Madero : Spain, slang, derogatory for police officers (plural: los maderos, la madera). Translates as "wood." Reference to the brown uniforms formerly worn by the Policía Nacional.la Madama / le Madame : Italian, slang, meaning the State Police/the policemen. Featured also in Monicelli's movie "I soliti ignoti".
Maison poulaga : French, slang, derogatory, of police officers and police stations. Means roughly "henhouse".
Mama (Maman in the south): Indian. Derogatory. Hindi (Malayalam in south) word which means uncle. Sarcastic reference to a policeman.
Manaek : Israel, mostly for the Military Policemen.
Mapita : (Little map in spanish) for highway partol because of the little map displayed on the side of their units.
Mata: Singapore. Malay word for eye.
The Man
The Man
"The Man" is a slang phrase that may refer to the government or to some other authority in a position of power. In addition to this derogatory connotation, it may also serve as a term of respect and praise....
: English language, hippy slang, popular during the 1960s and 1970s during the anti-establishment
Anti-establishment
An anti-establishment view or belief is one which stands in opposition to the conventional social, political, and economic principles of a society. The term was first used in the modern sense in 1958, by the British magazine New Statesman to refer to its political and social agenda...
and anti-authoritarian
Anti-authoritarian
Anti-authoritarianism is opposition to authoritarianism, which is defined as a "political doctrine advocating the principle of absolute rule: absolutism, autocracy, despotism, dictatorship, totalitarianism." Anti-authoritarians usually believe in full equality before the law and strong civil...
movements. Implies that police are a tool of the powerful "man" that is trying to keep others down.
Meat Wagon : UK. a police van
Meathead : Canadian. Military police, the term dates as far back as World War II, when other corps of the Canadian army also had "head" names. The name for the military police refers to perceived intellectual capacity. The Engineers were known as Thumper Heads, from a hand-held post driving tool called a thumper, and the Armoured corps as "Zipper Heads", from a helmet featuring a number of zippers to allow concurrent use of head phones.
Member : Canada. Internal slang, used in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to refer to fellow Mounties, in place of the usual "officer" or "constable" (or equivalent) in other police forces.
Ment : Russian (мент, pl menty менты). Origines of the word are the older Romanian border mounted guard part of uniform - the short windcoat named "ment".
Milico : Uruguay and Argentina. Coming from "militar", the Spanish word for military. Once police in those countries was a military institution, not a civil one.
Millicent : Nadsat
Nadsat
Nadsat is a fictional register or argot used by the teenagers in Anthony Burgess' novel A Clockwork Orange. In addition to being a novelist, Burgess was also a linguist and he used this background to depict his characters as speaking a form of Russian-influenced English...
slang for Policemen, derived from the Russian "Militsiya" (Used in A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange is a 1962 dystopian novella by Anthony Burgess. The novel contains an experiment in language: the characters often use an argot called "Nadsat", derived from Russian....
).
Mil'ton: (ru мильтон) rarely using in contemporary for militia men in Russia
Messing : Norwegian slang, the Norwegian word for "brass".
Monos : Spain, slang, derogatory, collective term in reference to the police officers' uniform
Mounties : Canada, colloquial, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
.
The Mustached Pagoda : Canada, slang, originally coined in Halifax, Nova Scotia. A surrealist term summoning from such noted philosophers as AJ Ayer and Josiah Royce
Josiah Royce
Josiah Royce was an American objective idealist philosopher.-Life:Royce, born in Grass Valley, California, grew up in pioneer California very soon after the California Gold Rush. He received the B.A...
, intended as a confusing and somewhat ambiguous insult.
Mingara or sometimes Mingara Kaingara, from traveller slang especially Newark, Nottinghamshire, England.
Mizzder Berllizeban Badger. ("Mr Policeman Badger"): UK, literary. The constable in the Rupert Bear
Rupert Bear
Rupert Bear is a children's comic strip character, who features in a series of books based around his adventures. The character was created by the English artist Mary Tourtel and first appeared in the Daily Express on 8 November 1920. Rupert's initial purpose was to win sales from the rival...
stories by Mary Tourtel
Mary Tourtel
Mary Tourtel was an English artist and creator of Rupert Bear.-Biography:Tourtel was born as Mary Caldwell and raised in an artistic family, daughter of a stained glass artist and stonemason. She studied art under Thomas Sidney Cooper at the Sidney Cooper School of Art in Canterbury, and became a...
.
Mr. Plod, P.C. Plod or Plodder : UK, slang, literary, (also used in Australia) from the Noddy books by Enid Blyton
Enid Blyton
Enid Blyton was an English children's writer also known as Mary Pollock.Noted for numerous series of books based on recurring characters and designed for different age groups,her books have enjoyed huge success in many parts of the world, and have sold over 600 million copies.One of Blyton's most...
, in which Mr. Plod
Mr. Plod
Mr. Plod is a fictional character in the Noddy children's series by Enid Blyton.He is a forthright police officer who never lets Toyland's crooks escape from the "long arm of the law". He always pretends to know the problem, but can never quite figure it out.In later adaptations he is also known...
was the village policeman. "Plod" has also commonly been used by the British police themselves, as has its (generally disparaging) female equivalent "plonk".
Muppet : acronym of Most Useless Police Person Ever Trained
Murija : A Serbo-croatian
Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian or Serbo-Croat, less commonly Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian , is a South Slavic language with multiple standards and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro...
term for police, with a singular "murjak". True origin somewhat unknown.
Musgarers : gypsy or Romani term
Musora : in Russia plural unusing in other situations to "musor" (ru мусор) literally translated as "garbage". Origines - in obsolete abbreviation ru МУС (MUS) fully Московский уголовный сыск (Moskowskii ugolownyi sysk, Moskow criminal investigatings)
N
Narc : US, abbreviated form of "Narcotics Agent"; not to be confused with Copper's Nark a term used in Great Britain for an informant.Nab Jones : Southern United States term for traffic police.
Nazi Stormtrooper : UK, relating to subjective observation that police act like German soldiers of the same name.
Nickers, Nicknicks : UK, uncommon British terms, being a pun on "knickers" (female underwear). As the term is spoken not written the silent "k" in knickers is not obvious. Derives from officers "nicking" a suspect, i.e. arresting them, and taking them to "the nick" i.e. the police station.
Night Jack : English police slang for a detective working night shift. Jack referring to the detective.
Nine: Used mainly in south Florida to describe officers. Called nine because they are said to come in packs, such as nine at a time
O
O-Po-Po : A term used in OntarioOntario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
to describe the Ontario Provincial Police
Ontario Provincial Police
The Ontario Provincial Police is the Provincial Police service for the province of Ontario, Canada.-Overview:The OPP is the the largest deployed police force in Ontario, and the second largest in Canada. The service is responsible for providing policing services throughout the province in areas...
.
Old Bill : A term in use in London among other areas, inspiring the television series The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
. The origin of this nickname is obscure; according to the Metropolitan Police themselves, there are at least 13 different explanations.
One Time : A term, mostly used on the U.S. West Coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
, that has been given numerous explanations, including: the idea that if one is arrested, it only takes "one time" to be put away (convicted); and that looking at police officers "one time" is enough to garner their attention and invite harassment.
Other People : Used in J.J. Connolly's Layer Cake
Layer Cake (novel)
Layer Cake is the debut novel of British author J. J. Connolly, first published in 2000 by Duckworth Literary. It was made into a motion picture in 2004 , directed by Matthew Vaughn and written for the screen by Connolly himself.-Plot introduction:The book takes place in nineties London and is...
to refer to the police.
P
Paco : A derogatory Chilean term for CarabinerosCarabineros de Chile
thumb|250px|Carabineros de Chile, patrolling a street in [[Santiago, Chile|Santiago]]The Carabiniers of Chile, are the uniformed Chilean national police force and gendarmerie, created on April 27, 1927. Their mission is to maintain order and create public respect for the laws of the country...
, the national police force of Chile. In Costa Rica, a familiar term for police, loosely derogatory. The term comes from the nickname 'Paco' given to Francisco Calderón, a Security Minister in the 1940s.
Panda Car
Panda car
The phrase panda car refers to a small or medium-sized police car operated by British police forces. They are used for ordinary patrol work, with larger and more powerful vehicles being used for emergency response, Road Policing Unit duties and as Armed Response Vehicles-History of the term:Panda...
: UK, a police car. Named because they were originally painted with large panels of black and white, or blue (usually light blue) and white.
Pandu : Indian constabulary (and not officers) were recruited mostly from village areas. Derived from popular Marathi movie 'Pandu Hawaldar' where the protagonist is a constable named as Pandu.
Pandur : Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian or Serbo-Croat, less commonly Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian , is a South Slavic language with multiple standards and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro...
derogatory term for a police officer (plural Pandurija, as a term for the police in general). In its origin, it was the Pandurs
Pandurs
The Pandurs were Croatian Austrian frontier soldiers, who inhabited the areas of the Kingdom of Croatia and Military Frontier, and fought not only in the East-Turkish front, but also in the West-European front. They were a non-linear army, made out mainly of Croats...
, who served as the watchmen on the Austrian Military frontier.
Panser : Danish slang for a police officer. Widely used as a negative reference to the police in Denmark. Literally translated to the English word "panzer"
Paskalakki : Finnish, derogatory. Literally means "hat (full) of shit".
Pasma : Spain, slang, derogatory term for police
Pedal Bacon : UK, Police on Bicycles.
Peeler, Peelers : UK, slang, archaic, from Sir Robert Peel
Robert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 December 1834 to 8 April 1835, and again from 30 August 1841 to 29 June 1846...
(see 'Bobby'); it has largely disappeared in mainland Britain, is often used in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, usually pejoratively. Canada, coloquial, refers to Peel Regional Police Service in Ontario, Canada. Considered derogatory as "peeler" is slang for a striptease dancer.
Penelope's : US. A slang word for the police term coined by the San Francisco Bay Area rap artist E-40.
Perp Walk : US. A slang term for dramatically parading an arrested subject (the perpetrator or "perp") in shackles before the press for no other purpose than for the photo-op. On frequent occasions, notorious subjects already in custody are taken out of jail and sent out the back door of a police station, only to be driven around the corner and then removed from the vehicle in order to convey an impression that the suspect is first arriving at the police station.
Pig
Pig
A pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig, its ancestor the wild boar, and several other wild relatives...
: This derogatory term was widespread during the 19th century, disappeared for a while, but reappeared during the 20th and 21st century. It became especially popular during the 1960s and 1970s in the underground hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
and anti-establishment
Anti-establishment
An anti-establishment view or belief is one which stands in opposition to the conventional social, political, and economic principles of a society. The term was first used in the modern sense in 1958, by the British magazine New Statesman to refer to its political and social agenda...
culture. Now prevalent in many English-speaking countries. It has also been used in anti-authoritarian punk
Punk subculture
The punk subculture includes a diverse array of ideologies, and forms of expression, including fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film, which grew out of punk rock.-History:...
and gangsta rap
Gangsta rap
Gangsta Rap is a subgenre of hip hop music that evolved from hardcore hip hop and purports to reflect urban crime and the violent lifestyles of inner-city youths. Lyrics in gangsta rap have varied from accurate reflections to fictionalized accounts. Gangsta is a non-rhotic pronunciation of the word...
circles. Oz magazine
Oz (magazine)
Oz was first published as a satirical humour magazine between 1963 and 1969 in Sydney, Australia and, in its second and better known incarnation, became a "psychedelic hippy" magazine from 1967 to 1973 in London...
showed a picture of a pig dressed as a policeman on a front cover.
Plastic Policemen : UK. A term used for Community Support Officers as they only have the same powers of arrest as civilians. Likening them to a toy policeman (fake)
Plain Brown Wrapper : Most commonly used by truck drivers over the CB radio, in reference to unmarked vehicles and plainclothes police officers, usually of local or state jurisdictions.
Pigtail : A slang term used when a police officer stops you or picks you up. "I picked up a pigtail"
Plastics : Colloquial term used by Australian state police to refer to the Australian Federal Police
Australian Federal Police
The Australian Federal Police is the federal police agency of the Commonwealth of Australia. Although the AFP was created by the amalgamation in 1979 of three Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, it traces its history from Commonwealth law enforcement agencies dating back to the federation of...
.
Plod : An allusion to Mr Plod the Policeman
Mr. Plod
Mr. Plod is a fictional character in the Noddy children's series by Enid Blyton.He is a forthright police officer who never lets Toyland's crooks escape from the "long arm of the law". He always pretends to know the problem, but can never quite figure it out.In later adaptations he is also known...
in Enid Blyton's Noddy stories for children, to plod meaning to walk doggedly and slowly with heavy steps. Also known as "PC Plod".
Plonk : Police slang for female officer
Po-key : Slang term for prison.
Polis : With a long 'o' and a short 'i', pronunciation used in Scotland. (coincidentally, this is the Swedish as well as Malaysian spelling of 'police')
Politzai: (ru pl полицаи sg полицай) - in Russia after renaming Militia to Police (ru Полиция Politzia) in March 2011. Origines - collaborationists regular troops on territories occupied by Nazi what Sowiet people called "полицаи" (Politzai, by German word "Polizei").
Po-po or Po : A term used commonly by North American youth and rap artists.
Porky or Porker : From the Porky Pig
Porky Pig
Porky Pig is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his star power, and the animators created many critically acclaimed shorts using the fat little pig...
cartoon and variation on "pig", usually specific to small town officers embodying the doughnut stereotype, "porker" variant may relate to "copper".
Poulet : French, translates as "chicken", derogatory. As in, Q: What do you get when the police station catches fire? A: "poulet rôti" (roast chicken).
Prahare : Nepalese for police
Psy : Polish for "dogs", singular - "pies", squad cars or police vans are often called "suki", which means "bitches", singular - "suka", because there are dogs inside.
Puerco : Mexican, derogatory, slang. Spanish for pig.
Purk : Norwegian, derogatory, Norwegian for "sow".
La Pula: Italian and Italian-American slang. Shortened form of polizia.
PC : Abbreviation of the rank "Police Constable". Also used by the Ontario Provincial Police to abbreviate "Provincial Constable". Constable
Constable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...
is used in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe, & most other ex-British Empire countries.
PW : Police Woman. Sometimes considered derogatory or merely impolite. See also WPC
R
Rashers : British slang derived from pigs.Ratazanas (plural) : Used in Portuguese language for police officers, meaning rat
Rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s.
Rati: Argentinean slang term for police officers derived from 'rata' (rat).
RC's : Short for RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police).
Rennleitung : Use in German language as slang term for the Autobahn highway police, roughly translates to "racing officials"
Rez Cop : Derogatory term to describe a Police/Peace Officer employed on or for an Indian Reservation/First Nations or Tribal Police. It erroneously implies they have less value and/or authorities than "off rez" police. To self describe as a "rez cop" would be to vulgarly separate oneself from other police services
Rollers : An American term believed to have originated in the San Francisco Bay Area. Also a connection for when police car lights are turned on because they roll in circles.
Raddies : UK
Roussin : French
Rozzers : An amusing British term for the police. Used by James May (Top Gear) on his cut-price Police car. More commonly used in comedy TV and Film.
S
Sbirro: Italian slang for policeman.Screw: Technically, a slang term for a prison guard and not for a police officer.
Scuffers : An old Liverpudlian term, which came to prominence in the 1960s Merseyside-set BBC television series Z-Cars
Z-Cars
Z-Cars is a British television drama series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby in the outskirts of Liverpool in Merseyside. Produced by the BBC, it debuted in January 1962 and ran until September 1978.-Origins:The series was developed by...
.
Schmig(s), Schmigglers : A variation on Pig, originated in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the early 1980s.
Schmitt : Used in France, origin unknown (possibly based on German).
Shades: Used in west and south west Ireland. Derived from the Irish (Gaelic) term 'Se d'og', pronounced Shay Dowgs, meaning 'Little Johns' originally used to describe the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) - British Army soldiers in Ireland were called 'Johns', so the British controlled police force (the RIC) were called 'Little Johns'. "Shay Dowgs' became shortened to 'Shades'.
Skowtu : Used in the Netherlands, origin from Suriname, which used to be part of the Netherlands.
Slaktarbussen : Swedish slang for police van, usually referred to riot police vans. Literally "Butchers van" .
Skel : A criminal, typically a drug addict who is extremely thin as the result of malnutrition as he/she binges on narcotics and other drugs.
Smokey : A term from the CB Radio
Citizens' band radio
Citizens' Band radio is, in many countries, a system of short-distance radio communications between individuals on a selection of 40 channels within the 27-MHz band. Citizens' Band is distinct from the FRS, GMRS, MURS and amateur radio...
fad of the 1970s. See "Bear", above. Smokey Bears are usually those that belong to a Highway Patrol
Highway patrol
A highway patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is primarily concerned with such duties.Duties of highway patrols or traffic...
or State Police
State police
State police are a type of sub-national territorial police force, particularly in Australia and the United States. Some other countries have analogous police forces, such as the provincial police in some Canadian provinces, while in other places, the same responsibilities are held by national...
agency in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Smurfs : 1. Used in Greece and Poland. Because the blue colour of police uniforms is like the old National Benzole advertising characters, the Smurfs.
Snippers : An African-American term used mostly in North America.
Snut : A slang used in Norway and Sweden, coming from "snute" which is "nose on a dog" describing that the police "sniffs"
Soggies : Australian term for officers of the Special Operations Group.
Squealers : A reference to the noise a pig makes. In the UK, squealer, or grass, is used to denote someone who informs on their criminal confederates.
'SS RUC' : A term used in Northern Ireland by the Republicanist/Catholic Community particularly during a riot. SS from the German secret police and RUC from the former name of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (Now Police Service Northern Ireland (PSNI)) Used as many perceived the police were against them for their beliefs, but mainly because they supported terrorism against the UK.
State boy: A US state trooper. Usually used in the midwest.
Staties : Refers to State Troopers, used throughout New England
Stench : UK and Australia - similar to filth
Strisser : Danish slang
Strømer : Danish slang
Suicide by Cop : American. Occurs when a suspect behaves in a manner that provokes or compels the police kill him, such as by holding hostages or threatening officers or civilians with a weapon.
Suits : Members of the Metropolitan Police CID as referred to by their uniformed colleagues.
Super Troopers : Became a common name in Vermont for police in that state after the release of the movie Super Troopers
Super Troopers
Super Troopers is a 2001 crime-comedy film directed by Jay Chandrasekhar, written by and starring the Broken Lizard comedy group . Marisa Coughlan, Daniel von Bargen and Brian Cox co-star while Lynda Carter has a cameo appearance...
.
Sün : Hedgehog Hungarian slang, during the 2009 protest against the Hungarian Government, policemen used a formation called hedgehog (sün in Hungarian). This comical situation became a widespread meme in the country and eventually policemen were given the name "sün".
Sweeney : Cockney rhyming slang
Cockney rhyming slang
Rhyming slang is a form of phrase construction in the English language and is especially prevalent in dialectal British English from the East End of London; hence the alternative name, Cockney rhyming slang...
for the Metropolitan Police's Flying Squad, from Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd is a fictional character who first appeared as then antagonist of the Victorian penny dreadful The String of Pearls and he was later introduced as an antihero in the broadway musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and its film adaptation...
, inspiring the television series The Sweeney
The Sweeney
The Sweeney is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London...
, (see also Heavy).
Swine : Comes from pig (see above).
T
Taquero: Argentinean lunfardo term for police officers. Derived from their habit of cutting the gangster's heels (tacos) in the early 20th century.The Thin Blue Line
The Thin Red Line (1854 battle)
The Thin Red Line was a military action by the Sutherland Highlanders red-coated 93rd Regiment at the Battle of Balaclava on October 25, 1854, during the Crimean War. In this incident the 93rd aided by a small force of Royal Marines and some Turkish infantrymen, led by Sir Colin Campbell, routed a...
: Used to describe the role of the police in being the barrier between civilized society and chaos, inspiring a UK TV sitcom
The Thin Blue Line (TV series)
The Thin Blue Line is a British sitcom starring Rowan Atkinson set in a police station that ran for two series on the BBC from 1995 to 1996...
and 2 documentaries
The Thin Blue Line (documentary)
The Thin Blue Line is a 1988 documentary film by Errol Morris, depicting the story of Randall Dale Adams, a man convicted and sentenced to die for a murder he did not commit. Adams' case was reviewed and he was released from prison approximately a year after the film's release.-Synopsis:The film...
of the same name. This led to policemen involved in entrapping gays being ironically described as "The Thin Blue Jeans".
Thulla: Northern-Indian/Pakistani Hindi/Urdu term for a cop with a baton (known locally as a "laathi").
Tinned Pig: derogatory term in some areas of southern England to refer to police in police cars.
Tira: Mexican slang for police car or policeman.
Tira: Brazilian slang for policeman.
Tit-Heads or Tits: Rarely used derogative British term for uniformed police officers originating in the shape of traditional UK police custodian helmet
Custodian helmet
Custodian helmet or centurion helmet, technically known as a 'Home Office pattern helmet', is a helmet worn by many policemen in England and Wales.-History:...
worn by patrolling (male) officers which are or were a similar shape to a large female breast - as in the phrase (to a policeman) "take the tit off your head" meaning "relax" or "imagine you are not on duty".
Tombo: Largely used in Perú, and in some parts of Colombia to call police officers. Etymological origin its based in an inversion of the Spanish word for button. In the early twentieth century the uniforms of the Peruvian police officers had very big buttons. The word is "botón" in Spanish. The thiefs inverted the word "Ton-bo". You could see that the inversion is "Tonbo", with an "n", and not "tombo" with "m", but in Spanish an "n" cannot precede a "b".
Troll: A term coined in South Florida (Palm Beach County). Made famous by the song "Troll Down".
Txacurra: Dog in Basque referring to police officers, similar to the use of 'dog' in English.
Twig Pig: Forest Ranger/Woods Cop
Twinrova : Rarely used in reference to police cars bearing red and blue lights on top of the car (only in Victoria, Australia
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
and Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
).
Tyre Biters : A term typically used for country police officers because of their habit of being involved with frequent car chases.
U
Uniform: A term used originally used by non-uniformed officers (detectives) for officers in uniform.Untouchables: A term often used in Scotland for a mobile squad of uniformed Police, term originates from the 1960s US TV series.
Utzer: German, slang, used e.g. in Upper Franconia
Upper Franconia
Upper Franconia is a Regierungsbezirk of the state of Bavaria, southern Germany. It forms part of the historically significant region of Franconia , all now part of the German Federal State of Bayern .With more than 200 independent breweries which brew...
, literally means "teaser"
Unipo: Short for University Police, used as a derogatory term towards campus police in some areas of the US
W
Wallopers : Australian, from "wallop", meaning to hit or beat.Whoop-Whoop : US, slang, from the Southern States & New York City, in reference to a patrol car's siren.
Woodentops : UK, derogatory, used by plain-clothes officers in reference to the uniformed branch. Possibly a reference to the 1950s children's TV series The Woodentops
The Woodentops (TV series)
The Woodentops was a children's television series first shown on BBC Television in 1955. It was created by Freda Lingstrom and Maria Bird and featured on the Friday edition of Watch with Mother...
, declining use.
Woolly-backs : UK, derogatory, used by plain-clothes officers in reference to the uniformed branch.
Wasps : UK, derogatory, from the recent adoption of Safety Yellow jackets by various Constabularies for uniformed officers in various roles, &, as with Bluebottles, from the 'swarming' of officers at an incident. Also used in Washington state, United States in reference to the Washington State Patrol.
Z
Zsaru, zsernyák, zsandár : Hungarian slang. From the French gendarmerieGendarmerie
A gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...
.
Zebra : US. Reference to the black and white color of police vehicles.
Zetas : Spain. Reference to the Citroën ZX, in common use by Police patrol units in Spain in the 1980s and 1990s