cop
/ˈkɑp/
verbnoun
Core
1.v.take by theft
“Someone snitched my wallet!”
2.v.take into custody
“the police nabbed the suspected criminals”
3.n.uncomplimentary terms for a policeman
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cop and copper share a recorded sense, so the question is not what they mean but which one fits. cop means “take by theft”. copper means “a ductile malleable reddish-brown corrosion-resistant diamagnetic metallic element; occurs in various minerals but is the only metal that occurs abundantly in large masses; used as an electrical and thermal conductor”. cop is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈkɑp/
1.v.take by theft
“Someone snitched my wallet!”
2.v.take into custody
“the police nabbed the suspected criminals”
3.n.uncomplimentary terms for a policeman
/ˈkɑpɚ/
| cop | copper | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈkɑp/ | /ˈkɑpɚ/ |
| Said | kahp | KAH-pur |
| Syllables | 1 | 2 |
| Letters | 3 | 6 |
| Parts of speech | verb, noun | noun, verb |
| Senses | 3 | 6 |
| How common | Core | Common |
| Synonyms | hook, snitch, thieve | Cu, atomic number 29 |
Full entry for cop · Full entry for copper · More comparisons
1.n.a ductile malleable reddish-brown corrosion-resistant diamagnetic metallic element; occurs in various minerals but is the only metal that occurs abundantly in large masses; used as an electrical and thermal conductor
2.n.a copper penny
3.n.uncomplimentary terms for a policeman