Dictionary

enforcer en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /ɪnˈfɔːsə/

Etymology

Etymology tree English enforce Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusnom. Latin -āriusbor. Proto-Germanic *-ārijaz Proto-West Germanic *-ārī Old English -ere Middle English -ere English -er English enforcer From enforce + -er.

Meanings

1. One who enforces.
2. (Philippines, abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis) Ellipsis of traffic enforcer.
   alt of traffic enforcer
3. A hired strongman, especially working for the underworld.
   • At 199 centimetres and a hundred kilos going up, he was scary big and he found work as a bouncer and enforcer[.] 2010, Peter Corris, Torn Apart, Allen and Unwin, page 117:
4. The member of a group, especially of a gang, charged with keeping dissident members obedient.
5. (UK) A battering ram used by the emergency services for gaining access to locked premises.
6. (qualifier:Australian rules football) A player who physically intimidates or confronts the opposition.

Forms

Deriveds

law-enforcer

Synonyms

policeman

Translations (4)

fr homme de main (member of a group charged with keeping dissident members obedient) · fr exécuteur (one who enforces) · hu verőember (member of a group charged with keeping dissident members obedient) · fr dur-à-cuire (ice hockey: player tasked with intimidating or confronting the opposition)