01
der Polizist
police officer
A male police officer whose job is to maintain public safety and order and to investigate crimes.
example
Ein Polizist regelte den Verkehr an der Kreuzung.
A police officer directed traffic at the intersection.
der Polizist
police officer
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Meanings
Usage tips
Careful: n-declension
'Der Polizist' (the police officer) is a weak noun (n-declension). This means it takes the ending '-en' in the accusative, dative, and genitive singular. This pattern applies to many masculine terms for people that end in '-ist.'
EXAMPLE
Ich frage den Polizisten nach dem Weg.
I ask the police officer for directions.
Word formation
The word is derived from 'die Polizei' (the police). The ending '-ist' is often used in German to refer to a person who practices a certain profession or belongs to a certain group.
EXAMPLE
Ein Journalist schreibt für eine Zeitung, ein Polizist arbeitet für die Polizei.
A journalist writes for a newspaper; a police officer works for the police.
Typical verbs
Common verbs with 'Polizist' (police officer) describe typical police activities. These include 'den Verkehr regeln' (to direct traffic), 'eine Anzeige aufnehmen' (to take a report), and 'einen Unfall aufnehmen' (to record an accident).
EXAMPLE
Nach dem Diebstahl nahm ein Polizist unsere Anzeige auf.
After the theft, a police officer took our report.
Compare with
Polizist vs Polizei
police
'die Polizei' and 'der Polizist' belong to the same area, but they do not mean the same thing. 'die Polizei' is the institution, meaning the authority, or sometimes also the police station as a place. 'der Polizist' is an individual male person who works for the police. Learners can easily confuse the words because in many situations you deal with both. If you mean the authority or the emergency call, you say 'die Polizei'. If you mean one individual person, you say 'der Polizist'.
Polizist
Im Zug fragt ein Polizist den Mann nach seinem Ausweis.
On the train, a police officer asks the man for his ID.
Polizei
Nach dem Unfall ruft der Fahrer die Polizei.
After the accident, the driver calls the police.
In real life
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