Skip to main content
copper

copper

33 9.0
A police officer who keeps people safe and enforces laws
  • noun
  • /ˈkɒp.ə/
  • Slang
translation icon : policía
  • Get back, coppers!
  • copper on the beat
  • call the copper
  • the copper said

If we can't send a copper into that area, then something's not right.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • The copper quickly arrived at the scene after the call was made to the station.

  • But listen, copper, I can tell you give up.

  • Well, this copper just sold the job to me, the idea of it.

  • "Sorry, Miss," said the copper at the station, "afraid I'm going to have to formally charge you."

    Fiction book (1994)
  • You'll never take me alive, copper. - Oh, alright then.

  • If we can't send a copper into that area, then something's not right.

  • I know you're finding your feet, and your father was a good copper, but there's a hierarchy in the police, love.

  • But back then you were judged on your ability as a young copper if you wanted to get in, in the CID, in particular on informants.

  • I saw a copper directing traffic during the busy rush hour in the city.

  • The copper questioned the witnesses about what they saw at the crime scene.

Synonyms

cop
vscopper
  • Informal
6.3

A person who works for the police

is also informal but specifically British and sometimes older in use
detective
vscopper
2.7

A police officer who investigates crimes and finds out what happened

is an informal British name for the general role, not an investigative specialist
officer
vscopper
1.2

A person who works for the police and enforces the law

is a more informal British term for that same person
police officer
vscopper
560 1.1

A person who keeps people safe and stops crime

is the informal British dated name for the same role
policeman
vscopper
303 1.0

A man whose job is to keep people safe and enforce laws

is gender-neutral informal British speech rather than a male-specific term
pig
vscopper
  • Offensive
203 9.9

An insulting name for a police officer used in anger

is informal British and can be casual or dated rather than hostile
constable
vscopper
  • UK
99 4.1

A police officer of low rank who works in local communities

is an informal British label sometimes used for that rank
patrolman
vscopper
  • US
28 4.2

A police officer who walks around an area to keep people safe

is a more general informal British term not limited to patrolling duties
fuzz
vscopper
  • Offensive
12 9.9

An informal name for a police officer

is informal too but is less insulting and more neutral in tone
bobby
vscopper
  • UK
8 9.2

A person who works as a police officer in Britain

is similar but more dated and sometimes less common in modern speech
bull
vscopper
  • Offensive
5 9.7

A rude slang name for a police officer

is an informal British term that is usually not meant as an insult
police constable
vscopper
  • UK
1 2.8

A low-ranking person who enforces the law and helps people

is the informal British term used for that same role
rozzer
vscopper
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A British slang word for a police officer

is informal too but is sometimes considered dated rather than current slang

Antonyms

574 2.6

A person who is not a soldier or police officer

Compounds

4 3.7

A place where people dig copper from the ground

1 3.4

A red-brown color like copper

1 2.3

A reddish-brown color like shiny metal used for coins and wires

copper sulfate
  • Specialized
1 4.6

A bright blue salt used to kill fungus on plants and for simple lab work

blister copper
  • Specialized
8.6

A form of impure copper with a black, bumpy surface caused by trapped gas when it is melted

A large tree with shiny purple or copper leaves often planted in gardens

copper glance
  • Specialized
9.9

A heavy grey mineral with a metallic shine that is mined for copper

A red, swollen nose with small broken veins, often from heavy drinking

copper oxide
  • Specialized
4.6

A substance made of copper and oxygen that forms black or red solids

copper pyrites
  • Specialized
8.6

A yellow shiny mineral that contains copper and iron and people mine it for copper

A sea fish with a copper-coloured body that lives near the Pacific coast of North America

copper-base alloy
  • Specialized
5.1

A metal made mostly of copper mixed with other metals like tin or zinc

An agreement that is sure not to fail

With a bottom made of copper often used for pans

copper-bottom
  • Specialized
8.5

A sheet of copper fixed to a ship's bottom to stop barnacles and sea life

A small copper-colored butterfly that visits wildflowers in fields and gardens

Surface Forms

copper singular
coppers plural

Etymology

A helpful way to remember copper for a police officer is to link it to the short word cop, which may come from the verb 'to seize', so a 'copper' is someone who catches or arrests people.