policía
/poliˈθia/
The English phrase "policeman" is translated into Spanish as policía.
The term policía is used to refer to an individual officer. If you want to refer specifically to a traffic police officer, you can use policía de tráfico or tránsito.
Which one should you use?
While policía refers to the person, it can also mean the police institution depending on the article used with it.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Argentina and Uruguay, the term cana is used to refer to a policeman.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word policía is used for both male and female officers, changing only the article to indicate gender: el policía for a policeman and la policía for a policewoman. The plural form is policías. Note that using the feminine article with the singular form, la policía, refers to the police force as an institution rather than an individual.
How do you pronounce it?
/poliˈθia/
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking countries, you might hear the slang term paco to refer to a policía, particularly in Chile.
- The word policía shares an ancestor with the English word 'policy', as both stem from the Greek word for a 'city-state' or 'government'.
- The term cana used in Argentina and Uruguay comes from the word for 'jail' or 'prison'.
Examples in context
- Él se hizo policía.He became a policeman.This sentence shows how to use policía when describing someone's profession.Tatoeba #1067522 by Shishir, translation #400537 by FeuDRenais
- Llama a un policía.Call a policeman.This sentence demonstrates how to use policía when requesting someone to contact an officer.Tatoeba #3704010 by cueyayotl, translation #2264749 by _undertoad
- Su padre es policía.Her father is a policeman.This sentence uses policía to identify someone's occupation.Tatoeba #2751218 by cueyayotl, translation #309707 by CK
- El policía llegó rápidamente a la escena del crimen.The policeman quickly arrived at the crime scene.
- La oficial detuvo el tráfico para dejar pasar a los peatones.The policewoman stopped the traffic to let pedestrians through.
- 110 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucía and Alejandro are walking in a busy city center.
- LucíaAlejandro, ¿has visto a un policía por aquí?Alejandro, have you seen a policeman around here?
- AlejandroNo, Lucía, no veo a ningún policía.No, Lucía, I don't see any policeman.
- LucíaEs que perdí mi cartera y quiero avisar a un policía.It's just that I lost my wallet and I want to notify a policeman.
- AlejandroNo te preocupes, yo te ayudo a buscarlo.Don't worry, I will help you look for him.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry policía, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries policía, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
