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List of Slang Terms for Police Officers Information

Many slang terms for police officers 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:

Contents: Top 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
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5-O (Five-Oh)
US, slang, term is for police officers and/or a warning that police are approaching. It comes from the fact that almost all police cars around the nation were the Ford Crown Victoria with the 5.0 Liter Police Interceptor package. The old cars used to have an emblem that read "5.0" on each side of the car (this is the same emblem that was used on the 5.0 liter Mustangs). Hence, people began warning when the cops were coming by screaming Five-0 whenever they say a cop car. Some also believe that that the term has an origin from the original television series Hawaii Five-O. 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.).
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 movement.[1]
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.)
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
Related to a breed of dog, the Australian Cattle Dog, this term was used for the Australian police drama series Blue Heelers, but it has little if any historical or current broader usage.
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.
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.[2] 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
Used in Baltimore, MD to refer to police officers.
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.[3]

C

Campo
(Pronounced Cam-poe) : 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 term for jail.
Care bears
British slang (Isle of Wight) for Community Support Officers, denoting their inability to do anything more than the average citizen when a crime is committed. The name is derived from a cartoon of the same name.
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 [4]
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
The origins of this term are uncertain. The term may refer 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.
This term is often the topic of folk etymology. One incorrect theory to its origin is that it is an acronym for Constable On Patrol. Another incorrect theory goes back to the French Revolution when a group of people would call out traitors to be beheaded. This group was called the Committee of Public Safety. The Committee of Public Safety would carry out justice for the best interest of the common people or so they believed. The acronym for the Committee of Public Safety is COPS, which is why some believe the term cop to come from this term from the late 1700's.
Copcycles
A slang term for police officers on bicycles.
Copicide
Slang term for a person who threatens police officers in order to get killed. A combination of cop and suicide.
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.

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 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". Female detectives have been called Dickless Tracy's or the DT has arrived.
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).
Droid or Roham-droid
Hungarian slang for riot police, based on Star Wars (in Hungarian, rendőrség is police, rendőr is police officer, rohamrendőr is riot police officer, roham-droid is super battle droid in Star Wars).
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 and he refers to the police as "The Doughnut Squad".

E

Ecilop
Australia 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.

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, 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.
Federales
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.
Filth
Normally "The Filth", UK, the police.[5]
(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.
Fish Cop
Derogatory term for Fish and Wildlife Officers and Conservation Officers in Canada, particularly Alberta and British Columbia.
Fist Bandit Teamsters
Refers to SWAT teams in Australia.
Five-0
Orginated from the 1960's show Hawaii Five-0.
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,[6] 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.

G

G-Man
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.)[7]

Also used in context with Gaver Wagons, mainly in the London, Kent and other parts of South-East of England.

Gliny
Colloquial for police officers in Poland, stands for "copper" also: Gliniarze, singular: "Glina" or "Gliniarz". Translated as "Cop".
Garda
The name of the Police in the Republic of Ireland. In Irish Gaelic- Guards.
Grass
Cockney (English) for a police informant: Grasshopper = Copper.[8] 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.

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 OZ)[9] )
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).
Hekus
Hungarian, perhaps come from Yiddish.
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 and wear the same uniforms. 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.

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 markings.)
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

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".
Keuf
French, slang, of uncertain origin (one meaning is given as being "flic" in reverse - see verlan).
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".
Kopó
Hungarian, meaning sleuth or beagle.
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.
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.

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 patrol 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). Origins 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.[10] "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". Origins - 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.
Ngonjo
Zimbabwe slang for Police officer (Ngoh-n-joh)
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 Ontario, 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.[11]
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.

P

Paco
A derogatory Chilean term for Carabineros, 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.[12]
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".
Party Van
Internet slang for Police or FBI van.[13]
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.[14] 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.[15]
Plastic Policemen
UK. A term used for Community Support Officers as they only have they don't even 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.[16] Also known as "PC Plod".
Plonk
Police slang for female officer.
Po-key
Slang term for prison.
Pols or Poles
Canada, usually plural phrase "the pols".
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. Mostly used in south Toronto & Malvern area. Decribes a serious police.
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, and most other ex-British Empire countries.
PW
Police Woman. Sometimes considered derogatory or merely impolite. See also WPC.

Q

Queen's Cowboys
Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Queen's Men

R

Rashers
British slang derived from pigs.
Ratazanas (plural)
Used in Portuguese language for police officers, meaning rats.
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 [17]
Rozzers
From 'Robert', after Sir Robert Peel (1788–1850) , commonly considered the the father of modern policing, and who established the Metropolitan Police Force in London (1829). 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. It's a very vulgar word, used mainly by criminals.
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
Used in Greece and Poland. Because the blue colour of police uniforms is like 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.[18]
Suits
Members of the Metropolitan Police CID as referred to by their uniformed colleagues.
Summon Auntie
Singapore. Used to refer to middle-aged female traffic wardens who place a summons on vehicles violating parking laws.
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 2006 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". ("s" in Hungarian sholuld be pronounced as "sh")
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).

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
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".
TP (plural TP's)
Abbreviation of Traffic Police, used in Singapore.
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.

U

Uniform
A term 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, literally means "teaser".
Unipo
Short for University Police, used as a derogatory term towards campus police in some areas of the US.

V

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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, 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.

X

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Y

Yuta
Argentine lunfardo for police officers.
Yagallo or Yagello
Lovari (gypsy) word for police.
Yellow Fever
Nigeria. Reference in pidgin to the Nigerian Police Force (Traffic Division). Traffic wardens wear bright orange khaki shirts.

Z

Zsaru, zsernyák, zsandár
Hungarian slang. From the French gendarmerie.
Zebra
US. Reference to the black and white color of some police vehicles.
Zetas
Spain. Reference to the Citroën ZX, in common use by Police patrol units in Spain in the 1980s and 1990s.

References

  1. ^ http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=babylon
  2. ^ ""bobby" – Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford University Press. April 2010. http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/bobby. Retrieved January 25, 2011.
  3. ^ Svenska Akademiens ordbok
  4. ^ "ex DS Roddy Llewelyn". http://www.slavedetective.wordpress.com.
  5. ^ "Definition for filth - Oxford Dictionaries Online". Oxford University Press. http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/filth. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  6. ^ ""fuzz" – Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford University Press. April 2010. http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_gb0323160?rskey=gDSBCX&result=2. Retrieved 25 January 2011.
  7. ^ Urban Dictionary definition
  8. ^ Farmer and Henley's 1893 Dictionary of Slang
  9. ^ "Episode 3 Season 3". OZ. http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Oz_(TV_series)#Legs_.5B3.3.5D.
  10. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary (6th ed.), Oxford University Press, 2007, ISBN 978-0-19-920687-2
  11. ^ "Origins of the name "Old Bill"". Metropolitan Police. http://www.met.police.uk/history/oldbill.htm. Retrieved 24 April 2010.
  12. ^ Francisco Calderón.
  13. ^ http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/4chan-party-van
  14. ^ http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2209/why-are-the-police-called-cops-pigs-or-the-fuzz
  15. ^ An Oz magazine cover with a pig dressed as a police officer.
  16. ^ "plod" in Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford University Press. April 2010. http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/bobby. Retrieved January 25, 2011.
  17. ^ Olivier Leroy (1922). A Glossary of French Slang. World Book Company. p. 141. http://books.google.com/books?id=MmdAAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA141. Retrieved 7 October 2011.
  18. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_by_cop, examined May 23, 2011.

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