policeman

noun

po·​lice·​man pə-ˈlēs-mən 

1

: a member of a police force

2

: one held to resemble a policeman

… making the United States the policeman for the whole wide world.

—R. B. Long

Synonyms of policeman

• cop
• officer
• constable

Examples of policeman in a Sentence

reported the crime to the nearest policeman

Recent Examples on the Web

When bumbling village policeman Derry (an endearing Nicholas Braun) dismisses any suspicion of foul play despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, it’s left to the sheep to prove otherwise — despite no ability to converse with their human counterparts beyond Lassie-style leading and hinting. —Guy Lodge, Variety, 27 Apr. 2026

The alleged kidnapping of Donaldson was the second time this normally rare type of crime — the abduction of a policeman during the course of his job — has occurred in the East Bay in two months. —Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2026

The White House’s approach of eschewing being the world’s policeman to instead focus on key geopolitical battlegrounds is paying off, an ex-assistant secretary of state wrote. —Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 21 Apr. 2026

My dashing policeman needed to be in peak form. —Literary Hub, 15 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1788, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for policeman

• policemen

Kids Definition

policeman

noun

po·​lice·​man pə-ˈlē-smən 

: police officer

Medical Definition

policeman

noun

po·​lice·​man pə-ˈlēs-mən 

plural policemen -mən 

: an instrument (as a flat piece of rubber on a glass rod) for removing solids from a vessel (as a beaker)