cop

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈkäp 

plural cops

informal

: police officer

They called the cops to report a robbery.

As he awaits trial, the retired cop is on the other side of the law.

—Michael Wilson

… the department invests in officers and their futures by providing training that makes them better cops.

—Laura Lane

cop

2 of 4

verb

copped; copping

transitive verb

1

slang : to get hold of : catch, capture

also : purchase

2

slang : steal, swipe

3

: adopt sense 2

cop an attitude

intransitive verb

slang : admit sense 2b

—used with to

these small-timers would … cop to the smallest offense their attorney could negotiate

—Tom Clancy

cop

3 of 4

noun (2)

plural cops

1

: a cylindrical or conical mass of thread, yarn, or roving wound on a quill or tube

a cop of yarn

also : a quill or tube upon which it is wound

2

archaic, dialectal, chiefly England : top, crest

cop

4 of 4

abbreviation

1

copper

2

copulative

3

copy

4

copyright

Phrases

cop a plea

: to plead guilty to a lesser charge in order to avoid standing trial for a more serious one

broadly : to admit fault and plead for mercy

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• bobby [British]
• bull [slang]
• constable [chiefly British]
• copper
• flatfoot [slang]
• fuzz
• gendarme
• lawman
• officer
• police officer
• policeman
• shamus [slang]

Verb

• buy
• pick up
• purchase
• take

Examples of cop in a Sentence

Verb

I managed to cop an invitation.

He copped the idea from me.

They expected me to cop all the blame!

He copped the full force of the blow.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The party was a big hit until the cops showed up with riot gear and helicopters surrounding the street, cutting the festivities short before things had a chance to really get rocking. —Daniel Kohn, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2024

The cops asked her why wasn't Hartford in your timeline? —Erin Moriarty, CBS News, 6 Apr. 2024

In Tompkins Square Park, cops near a cruiser were drinking iced coffee and smoking. —Sarah Larson, The New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2024

Things take an ugly turn when the fake cops inadvertently run over and kill an Arab man, triggering a firestorm amongst locals. —Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024

The cops stopped it, arrested two young men, and a police squad in bulletproof vests and balaclavas stormed the villa. —Leif Wenar, WIRED, 2 Apr. 2024

The New York City cop, Jonathan Diller, who was murdered. —Lawrence Richard, Fox News, 28 Mar. 2024

Minor incident blows up Crudup’s arrest on a warm July evening three years ago began with a minor altercation that ballooned into an all-out chase by dozens of cops and the eventual videotaped beat-down of the Maryland man. —Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2024

That led to the seizure of Antioch officers’ phones, which in turn opened a separate can of worms: an ongoing scandal over racist text messages sent or received by dozens of current and former Antioch cops. —Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2024

Verb

That said, cop your friends this ski mask that makes all the difference. —Anna Smoot, Rolling Stone, 23 Feb. 2024

In more pretentious environments, copping at bargain basement prices might be frowned upon. —Dave Schilling, Los Angeles Times, 17 Nov. 2023

Just a few spots down, Tony Bennett smiles next to British guitar great Jeff Beck, with beloved comedian/actor Pee Wee Herman copping a squat in the foreground. —Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 12 Dec. 2023

Costco Membership cards are not transferable, but that’s not stopped people from borrowing their family members’ or friends’ to cop some savings. —Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz, 28 June 2023

Now, both tennis fans and fashion fans alike can cop Coco’s style by picking up a pair of sneakers from Gauff’s New Balance collection online. —Rudie Obias, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Sep. 2023

Switch up the product, and your customers might cop from someone else. —Vulture, 2 Aug. 2023

Years later, Meta copped TikTok’s format for its Reels offering on Instagram. —Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz, 4 July 2023

And there's no better way to cop some rich-kid style than at The Ben Silver Collection flagship store in Charleston. —Andrea Romano, Travel + Leisure, 31 May 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

short for copper entry 3

Verb

perhaps from Dutch kapen to steal, from Frisian kāpia to buy; akin to Old High German kouf trade — more at cheap entry 3

Noun (2)

Middle English, from Old English copp

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1859, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1704, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (2)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing cop

• cop hold of
• cop a feel
• cop a plea
• cop an attitude
• cop it
• rent-a-cop
• it's a fair cop
• cop to
• cop shop
• not much cop
• cop off with
• cop out
• traffic cop

Kids Definition

cop

1 of 2 verb

ˈkäp 

copped; copping

1

slang : to get hold of : capture entry 2 sense 1a

2

slang : steal entry 1 sense 2a

3

: adopt sense 2

cop an attitude

cop

2 of 2 noun

: police officer

Etymology

Verb

probably from Dutch kapen "to steal"