Posse Meaning
/ˈpɒs.i/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA group or company of people, originally especially one having hostile intent; a throng, a crowd.
nounA group of people summoned to help law enforcement.
Sentence Examples
The posse tracked the outlaw for days.
Mary led the posse into the canyon.
CEFR Practice Quiz
In the old western movie, the sheriff organized a local ____ to catch the thief.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The sheriff assembled a ____ of volunteers to track down the outlaws who had robbed the bank.
Word Origin & History
Ellipsis of posse comitatus.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"It is traditional in America to criticize the schools; for more than a century, parents, self-styled experts, and educators themselves have attacked and indicted the educational system. No aspect of schooling has been more severely criticized than reading instruction. The current books have a long ancestry, and every innovation carries in its train a posse of suspicious and, one feels, unpersuadable observers."
— 1972, Mortimer J. Adler with Charles Van Doren, chapter 3, in How to Read a Book, Touchstone September 2014 edition, New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, →OCLC, page 23:
"He […] no sooner set his nose within the room to which he was directed, than the constable and his posse sprung upon him, before he had the least intimation of his design, or any opportunity of acting in his own defence."
— 1751, [Tobias] Smollett, The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle […], volume (please specify |volume=I to IV), London: Harrison and Co., […], →OCLC:
"Mathews then appointed Morton as a deputy sheriff and after a posse had been selected, they went in pursuit of the criminals. Within a few hours, the posse overtook the thieves."
— 1986, Donald R. Lavash, Sheriff William Brady, Tragic Hero of the Lincoln County War, Sunstone Press, →ISBN, page 77:
"While Wyatt dismounted and aimed his shotgun at Brocius, the rest of his posse retreated."
— 2013, Andrew C. Isenberg, Wyatt Earp: A Vigilante Life, Hill and Wang, →ISBN, page 165:
"Jamaican posses can be traced back to the Jamaican neighborhoods, and posse names correspond to the names of each neighborhood in which the gangs operate."
— 1997, Michael D. Lyman, Organized Crime, Prentice Hall, page 287:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
In the old western movie, the sheriff organized a local ____ to catch the thief.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The sheriff assembled a ____ of volunteers to track down the outlaws who had robbed the bank.