posse

posse
\ \ [17] Posse was the Latin verb for ‘be able’. It was a conflation of an earlier expression potis essebe able’; and potisable’ was descended from an Indo-European base *potthat also produced Sanskrit pati- ‘master, husband’ and Lithuanian patishusband’. In medieval Latin posse came to be used as a noun meaning ‘power, force’. It formed the basis of the expression posse comitātus, literally ‘force of the county’, denoting a body of men whom the sheriff of a county was empowered to raise for such purposes as suppressing a riot. The abbreviated form posse emerged at the end of the 17th century, but really came into its own in 18th- and 19th-century America.
\ \ Cf.POSSIBLE, POTENT

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Posse — may refer to:* Posse comitatus (disambiguation page) Organizations * Sheriff s posse * Posse Foundation, a non profit leadership scholarship organization * Jamaican Posse * Spur Posse * Indian Posse * Posse Program Popular culture * Posse (1975… …   Wikipedia

  • Posse — Pos se, n. See {Posse comitatus}. [1913 Webster] {In posse}. See {In posse} in the Vocabulary. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • posse — 1640s (in Anglo Latin from early 14c.), shortening of posse comitatus the force of the county (1620s, in Anglo Latin from late 13c.), from M.L. posse body of men, power, from L. posse have power, be able + comitatus of the county, genitive of… …   Etymology dictionary

  • posse — s. f. 1. Retenção ou fruição de uma coisa ou de um direito. 2. Estado de quem possui uma coisa, de quem a detém como sua ou tem o gozo dela. 3.  [Jurídico, Jurisprudência] Ação ou direito de possuir a título de propriedade. • posses s. f. pl.… …   Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa

  • posse — [käm΄ə tāt′əspäs′ē] n. [ML, short for posse comitatus, power of the county < L posse, to be able (see POTENT) + comitatus, county < comes, a COUNT2] 1. Historical a) the body of men required, upon being summoned, to assist the sheriff in… …   English World dictionary

  • Posse — (Lavertezzo,Швейцария) Категория отеля: Адрес: Via cantonale, 6633 Lavertezzo, Швейцария …   Каталог отелей

  • posse — I noun arm of the law, armed band, band, band of armed men, band of men armed with legal authority, body of men armed with legal process, body of men summoned by a sheriff, civilian police, custodians of the law, detachment of police, detail,… …   Law dictionary

  • posse — ► NOUN 1) N. Amer. historical a body of men summoned by a sheriff to enforce the law. 2) (also posse comitatus) Brit. historical the men of a county forming a body whom the sheriff could summon to repress a riot or for other purposes. [ORIGIN:… …   English terms dictionary

  • Posse [1] — Posse, ein Erzeugniß der heitern Laune, in welchem an sich Unwürdiges, Gemeines od. Beschränktes, aus seinem natürlichen Zusammenhang herausgehoben, in eine Ideenverbindung gebracht erscheint, in welcher es die Einbildunskraft anregt, ohne das… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Posse [2] — Posse, Bergsüdlich bei Sondershausen (Schwarzburg), mit fürstlichem Lustschloß …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Posse [1] — Posse ist zunächst ein derber, übermütiger Streich oder Schabernack (daher die Redensarten »Possen reißen«, »jemandem einen Possen spielen«), dann insbes. eine dramatische Darstellung voll drastischer Komik (s. Komisch), für die auch der Name… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

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