Posse
/ˈpɒs.i/noun
A group of people summoned or assembled for a particular purpose, especially a police or armed group.
Did you know?English posse comes through Latin legal language from posse, meaning “to be able,” and in medieval law it was tied to the sheriff’s authority to raise a group for action.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*poti-
“lord, master, one who has power”
Latin
Latin
potis
“able, capable”
Latin
Latin
posse
“to be able”
Medieval Latin
Latin
posse comitatus
“the force or authority of the county; the sheriff's power to summon able-bodied men”
17th Century
English
posse
“a body of men summoned to assist an officer”