Meaning of Posse | Babel Free

Definitions

1. A group or company of people, originally especially one having hostile intent; a throng, a crowd.
2. A group of people summoned to help law enforcement.
   historical
3. A search party.
   US
4. A criminal gang.
   Jamaica, US, slang
5. A group of (especially young) people seen as constituting a peer group or band of associates; a gang, a group of friends.
   colloquial

Equivalents

Examples

“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.”

“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.”

“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.”

“While Wyatt dismounted and aimed his shotgun at Brocius, the rest⟳ of his posse retreated.”

“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⟳.”

“Hey, sir? Sir, excuse⟳ me?” The blonde was calling out to him, in imperious tones that insisted on a reply⟳. […] She was breaking a rule⟳ of big-city life, breaking it brazenly, sure of her power, confident of her turf and posse, fearing nothing.”

“But the few friends that I DO have⟳ are my “ride⟳ or die⟳” chicks—my posse.”

CEFR level