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  1. posse comitatus love

Definitions

Wiktionary

  1. n. historical The able-bodied men over 15 in a given county who can be summoned by the sheriff to help keep the peace, or arrest a felon; also a group of men so gathered.
  2. n. figuratively Any band of men, especially armed or hostile.

GNU Webster's 1913

  1. (Law) The power of the county, or the citizens who may be summoned by the sheriff to assist the authorities in suppressing a riot, or executing any legal precept which is forcibly opposed.
  2. colloq. A collection of people; a throng; a rabble.

WordNet 3.0

  1. n. a temporary police force

Etymologies

  1. From Late Latin posse ("to be able (to have)") comitatus ("a company"). (Wiktionary)

Examples

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synonyms (2)

Words with the same meaning

  1. throng
  1. rabble

hypernyms (4)

Words that are more generic or abstract

  1. law
  1. constabulary
  1. police
  1. police force

reverse dictionary (1)

Words that contain this word in their definition

  1. posse

tags (1)

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  1. latin

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Lists

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  • dhuber From Latin... "force of the county" Oct 11, 2008

  • dgstone "The body of persons that a peace officer of a county is empowered to call upon for assistance in preserving the peace, making arrests, and serving writs." Mar 16, 2008

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‘posse comitatus’ has been looked up 803 times, added to 4 lists, commented on 2 times, and is not a valid Scrabble word.