policier
/pɔ.li.sje/
The English phrase 'policeman' is translated into French as policier.
policier refers to an individual member of a police force who is responsible for enforcing the law and maintaining public order. It is important to note that while policier refers to the person, the phrase la police is used to refer to the police force as an institution.
Which one should you use?
policier is used when referring to the specific person, whereas la police refers to the collective institution.
How does it change in a sentence?
The masculine singular form is policier and its plural is policiers. If you are referring to a female officer, use the feminine form policière.
How do you pronounce it?
/pɔ.li.sje/ (3 syllables)
Did you know?
- In a friendly or colloquial context, some French people might use the term keuf, which is the word flic pronounced in reverse using a type of slang called verlan.
- The word policier is also used as an adjective to describe a genre of fiction. A roman policier is a detective novel or a crime thriller.
- France has two distinct national police forces: the Police nationale and the Gendarmerie nationale. While both are policiers, the latter is a military force that primarily patrols rural areas.
Examples in context
- T'es un policier ?Are you a policeman?This sentence is useful for asking if someone is a policier.Tatoeba #4601016 by Amastan, translation #1886360 by CK
- Ziri est un policier.Ziri is a policeman.This sentence is used to state that a person is a policier.Tatoeba #12183369 by always, translation #10209410 by Amastan
- Son père est policier.Her father is a policeman.This sentence shows how to state that someone's father is a policier.Tatoeba #133826 by Micsmithel, translation #309707 by CK
- Le policier m'a aidé à retrouver mon portefeuille perdu.The policeman helped me find my lost wallet.
- Les flics ont réussi à arrêter les voleurs.The cops managed to catch the thieves.
- Je connais un flic qui travaille dans ce quartier.I know a cop who works in this neighborhood.
- 127 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Manon and Hugo are talking about a neighbor's brother.
- ManonEst-ce que ton frère est policier ?Is your brother a policeman?
- HugoOui, il est policier à Paris.Yes, he is a policeman in Paris.
- ManonC'est un travail difficile pour lui.It is a difficult job for him.
- HugoC'est vrai, mais il l'aime.That's true, but he loves it.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry policier, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
