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secret police
noun
: a police organization operating for the most part in secrecy and especially for the political purposes of its government often with terroristic methods
Examples of secret police in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Kara-Murza, who had been poisoned in 2015 and 2017, presumably by Vladimir Putin’s secret police, was serving the second year of a twenty-five-year sentence for his public opposition to the invasion of Ukraine.
—David Remnick, The New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2024
Both at home and abroad, China relies much more heavily than the United States does on its law enforcement, paramilitary, and secret police agencies to carry out security policy.
—Sheena Chestnut Greitens, Foreign Affairs, 15 Mar. 2024
These brazen actions catch the attention of the insidious secret police, who pressure Tomáš to deliver intel on his coworkers in order to protect his rebellious younger brother.
—Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 12 Sep. 2024
Last year, New York police arrested two men for allegedly setting up a secret police station for a Chinese provincial police agency.
—Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 5 Sep. 2024
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Word History
First Known Use
1823, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near secret police
Cite this Entry
“Secret police.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/secret%20police. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.
Kids Definition
secret police
noun
: a police organization operating mostly in secrecy and especially for the political purposes of its government and often using methods of terrorists
More from Merriam-Webster on secret police
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about secret police
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