COPS Synonyms: 137 Similar and Opposite Words

cops 1 of 2

noun

plural of cop

as in policemen

a member of a force charged with law enforcement at the local level a cop stopped her for speeding

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

civilians

cops

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of cop, slang

as in buys

to get possession of (something) by giving money in exchange for I copped a great outfit for only $50

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in grabs

to take physical control or possession of (something) suddenly or forcibly some concertgoers rushed pell-mell through the doors so that they could cop the seats down front

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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 cops

Noun

Th victim made contact with the bus and was struck, cops said. — Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 6 Sep. 2026 Employees at an O’Reilly Auto Parts in Tucson called the cops on Myers in May 2024. — Taylor Seely, AZCentral.com, 3 Sep. 2026 In the finale, Alice confronts Easton at his home and has to acknowledge that an entire cohort of people — cops, other wealthy men, even Easton’s own daughter — were complicit in his crimes. — Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 2 Sep. 2026 Sure enough, Jacob’s unc has ratted him out to the Philly cops. — Chris Klimek, Vulture, 2 Sep. 2026 In the years since Shakur's murder, what exactly happened in that hail of bullets -- and who pulled the trigger -- was obscured by a lack of physical evidence, feuding cops and the gangland code of silence. — Sasha Pezenik, ABC News, 31 Aug. 2026 Helping the cops is an affable coroner played by Ralph Macchio, whose ever-likable presence should help with the film’s streaming numbers. — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 31 Aug. 2026 Women have little voice in this community of stale, disappointed men, including the local cops who are her father’s best friends. — Guy Lodge, Variety, 30 Aug. 2026 The cops arrived hours past midnight, turning on the lights to reveal an army of dazed, squinting faces. — Taran Dugal, New Yorker, 30 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cops

Noun

The head-on crash that killed two policemen and five joyriders in Middlesbrough in August, and its aftermath, is the latest.

— The Week UK, TheWeek, 5 Sep. 2026
As a result, the policemen were tried for a second time, in which one officer was found not guilty, and the two others’ charges were ultimately dismissed due to a second hung jury and mistrial.

— Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of policemen

Verb

The sanctions aim to isolate the Islamic Republic from its remaining economic partners, including China, which buys more than 80% of Iranian oil shipments, usually through indirect channels.

— Samy Magdy, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
Inherited money in the hands of a 40-year-old buys a house or starts a business.

— Jon Sabes, Fortune, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of buys

Verb

Innanen came up with the idea that, as Anton gets up to leave while Paul Baker and Issa make out, Paul Baker grabs his leg to keep him on the bed.

— Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 2 Sep. 2026
The trooper grabs the man by his wrist and his dreadlocks and began yanking his upper body through the window, the video shows.

— Daniel McFadin, Arkansas Online, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of grabs

Noun

The Washington Post reported last month that authorities have charged or accused at least 50 law enforcement officers of leveraging ALPRs without authorization, sometimes using the software to stalk women.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Sep. 2026
Among them is a complaint by four Muslim women in Arizona who sued multiple police departments and Arizona State University after male officers removed their hijabs while arresting them at pro-Palestinian campus protests in 2024.

— BrieAnna J. Frank, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2026

Definition of officers

Verb

Set against the competitive world of Fleet Street, Murdoch purchases the failing Sun and recruits Lamb, a working-class editor with a very different idea of what a newspaper can be.

— Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 2 Sep. 2026
Anyone who meets the legal age requirement and purchases a ticket from an authorized retailer in a participating jurisdiction can play, regardless of nationality.

— Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of purchases

Verb

When a company that builds fire trucks, rail-maintenance machinery, or electric vehicle chargers is invited to bid on a big contract, the request that lands in its inbox can run to thousands of pages of technical specifications.

— Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2026
For a midsized carrier, this usually lands between 40 and 60 subprocesses, each carrying three to 12 variants.

— Manish Garg, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026