policial

English

Etymology

From police +‎ -ial.

Adjective

policial (not comparable)

1. (archaic) Relating to the police.
   • 1845, Edgar Allan Poe, The Purloined Letter:

     [W]here the case is of importance—or, what amounts to the same thing in the policial eyes, when the reward is of magnitude, the qualities in question have never been known to fail.

Catalan

Etymology

From policia +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [pu.li.siˈal]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic, Valencia) [po.li.siˈal]

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

Adjective

policial m or f (masculine and feminine plural policials)

1. (relational) police

   Synonym: policíac

Derived terms

• brutalitat policial

Further reading

• “policial”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “policial”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “policial” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.

Portuguese

Etymology

From polícia +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /po.li.siˈaw/ [po.li.sɪˈaʊ̯], (faster pronunciation) /po.liˈsjaw/ [po.liˈsjaʊ̯], /pu.li.siˈaw/ [pu.li.sɪˈaʊ̯], (faster pronunciation) /pu.liˈsjaw/ [pu.liˈsjaʊ̯]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /po.li.siˈaw/ [po.li.sɪˈaʊ̯], (faster pronunciation) /po.liˈsjaw/ [po.liˈsjaʊ̯], /pu.li.siˈaw/ [pu.li.sɪˈaʊ̯], (faster pronunciation) /pu.liˈsjaw/ [pu.liˈsjaʊ̯]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /po.li.siˈaw/ [po.li.sɪˈaʊ̯], (faster pronunciation) /po.liˈsjaw/ [po.liˈsjaʊ̯]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /pu.liˈsjal/ [pu.liˈsjaɫ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /pu.liˈsjal/ [pu.liˈsjaɫ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /pu.liˈsja.li/

• Audio (Portugal (Porto)):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: po‧li‧ci‧al

Adjective

policial m or f (plural policiais)

1. (relational) police

Noun

policial m or f by sense (plural policiais)

1. (Brazil) police officer

   Synonyms: polícia, guarda

Derived terms

• parapolicial

Related terms

• polícia
• policiamento
• policiar

Further reading

• “policial”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “policial”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Etymology

From policía +‎ -al.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /poliˈθjal/ [po.liˈθjal] (Spain)
• IPA^(key): /poliˈsjal/ [po.liˈsjal] (Latin America, Philippines)
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: po‧li‧cial

Adjective

policial m or f (masculine and feminine plural policiales)

1. (Spain) Related to the police, police force

   Synonyms: policíaco, policiaco

2. police procedural

   Synonym: de policías

3. whodunit, whodunnit (UK)

   Synonyms: policíaco, policiaco

Usage notes

• In a novel, drama, film or series, policial is more to refer to police procedural and policiaco/policíaco to whodunit.

Derived terms

• (whodunit): novela policiaca f, serie de televisión policíaca f
• parapolicial
• policialmente

Related terms

• policía f

Further reading

• “policial”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025