constables

noun

plural of constable, chiefly British
as in officers
a member of a force charged with law enforcement at the local level reported the crime to the local constable

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of constables The woman was able to flee the scene and located deputy constables. — Adam England, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026 Troopers and Beacon Falls constables responded to the home and detained Drozdowski, state police said. — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 6 May 2026 Off stage, Benedick and Beatrice spar their way toward the aisle, while our bumbling constables take center stage. — Cincinnati Enquirer, 7 Mar. 2026 Agencies assisting included Tarrant County constables, police departments from Fort Worth and Forest Hill, and the Texas Department of Public Safety. — Doug Myers, CBS News, 3 Feb. 2026 Harris County leaders worry a new law could leave them on the hook for higher costs by allowing constables to negotiate patrol contracts with neighborhood associations without approval. — John Lomax V, Houston Chronicle, 30 Jan. 2026 Texas law requires constables to become licensed peace officers with arresting authority within nine months of taking office. — Tracey McManus, Dallas Morning News, 29 Jan. 2026 That law change came more than half a decade after a joint WAVE News and Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting investigation highlighted the lack of training and accountability for the state’s constables, including some who had criminal records of their own. — Josh Wood, Louisville Courier Journal, 15 Dec. 2025 The law required sheriffs and constables to execute those orders — and enslavers paid them for their efforts. — Equal Justice Initiative, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for constables
  1. officers
  2. policemen
  3. cops
Noun
  • Footage released by Russian state media showed heavily armed law-enforcement officers, several ambulances and other emergency vehicles at the site.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 Aug. 2026
  • The young woman was also receiving medical treatment when officers entered the room with body cameras.
    — Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of officers
Noun
  • People began rioting in Los Angeles’ predominantly Black Watts neighborhood after a crowd watched White policemen forcefully subdue a Black man.
    — USA Today, USA Today, 28 July 2026
  • Over the weekend, dozens of plain-clothes policemen entered the protest site and dragged Wangchuk into an ambulance.
    — Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 20 July 2026
Definition of policemen
Noun
  • Bad cops are not being fired, and good cops who may be wrongfully accused are stuck in professional purgatory.
    — Sam Charles, Chicago Tribune, 3 Aug. 2026
  • On Monday, 21-year-old Javid Edwin, accompanied by a lawyer, surrendered at the 50th Precinct stationhouse and was charged with murder, manslaughter and weapon possession, cops said.
    — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of cops

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constables
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Cite this Entry

“Constables.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/constables. Accessed 7 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on constables

Nglish: Translation of constables for Spanish Speakers

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