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Glite Dictionary
Scotland Yard

Scotland Yard

12 3.5
The main office of London's police detectives
  • proper noun
translation icon : Scotland Yard
  • This is a case for Scotland Yard.
  • Scotland Yard said
  • Inspector from Scotland Yard
  • Scotland Yard detective

Yeah, we didn't see because we were Scotland Yard's top drug investigative unit.

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Examples

  • I'm from Scotland Yard.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • This is Chief Superintendent Johns, from Scotland Yard.

    Britannia Hospital (1982)

  • Hello, is that Scotland Yard?

    The Last of Mrs. Cheyney (1937)

  • The London Metropolitan Police, also known as Scotland Yard, is still in the process of trying to contact all potential victims.

    Blog text (29)

  • Scotland Yard is watching him, but I am afraid that we can expect no happy ending.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • They put a call through to Scotland Yard.

    The Last of Mrs. Cheyney (1937)

  • Inspector William Jenks, Scotland Yard.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • This is a case for Scotland Yard, where skilled detectives will investigate the matter.

  • Our orders are to keep it under observation until the Scotland Yard car arrives to assist.

  • I've just been down to Scotland Yard to provide my statement about the incident.

Synonyms

New Scotland Yard
vsScotland Yard
1 3.9

The main offices of the London police and their detectives

is the traditional name often used to mean the same headquarters and detectives

Surface Forms

Scotland Yard main

Morphology

Scotland + Yard

Scotland Yard is a lexicalized proper name referring to the Metropolitan Police headquarters / detective service in London; this institutional/metonymic meaning is not derivable from the literal constituents 'Scotland' (a country) and 'yard' (an outdoor area). The usage is culturally specific and historically established, so a B1 learner who knows the component words would not predict the police-related meaning.

Etymology

Scotland Yard takes its name from a street called Great Scotland Yard, where the first London police had offices by a small yard. People began to call the police and their detectives 'Scotland Yard', so today the name means the main office of the London police and its detectives.