enforcer

English

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.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪnˈfɔːsə/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)sə(ɹ)

Noun

enforcer (plural enforcers)

1. One who enforces.
2. (Philippines) Ellipsis of traffic enforcer.
3. A hired strongman, especially working for the underworld.
   • 2010, Peter Corris, Torn Apart, Allen and Unwin, page 117:

     At 199 centimetres and a hundred kilos going up, he was scary big and he found work as a bouncer and enforcer[.]

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.
7. (ice hockey, rugby, Australian rules football) A player who physically intimidates or confronts the opposition.

   Synonym: policeman

Derived terms

• law-enforcer

Translations

one who enforces

• French: exécuteur (fr)

member of a group charged with keeping dissident members obedient

• French: homme de main (fr)
• Hungarian: verőember (hu)

ice hockey: player tasked with intimidating or confronting the opposition

• French: dur-à-cuire (fr) m

Anagrams

• confrere, confrère, reconfer