POSSE

posse, posse comitatus

(noun) a temporary police force

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

posse (plural posses)

A group or company of people, originally especially one having hostile intent; a throng, a crowd. [from 17th c.]

(now, historical, in later use chiefly, US) A group of people summoned to help law enforcement. [from 17th c.]

Coordinate term: vigilante

(US) A search party.

(US, Jamaica, slang) A criminal gang. [from 20th c.]

(colloquial) A group of (especially young) people seen as constituting a peer group or band of associates; a gang, a group of friends. [from 20th c.]

Anagrams

• ESOPs, pesos, poses, s'pose, sopes, speos, spose

Source: Wiktionary


Pos"se, n.

Definition: See Posse comitatus. In posse. See In posse in the Vocabulary.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

29 March 2024

FAULTFINDING

(adjective) tending to make moral judgments or judgments based on personal opinions; “a counselor tries not to be faultfinding”


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