Gestapo
poʊ; noun
1.
the German state secret police during the Nazi regime, organized in 1933 and notorious for its brutal methods and operations.
adjective
2.
( sometimes lowercase ) of or resembling the Nazi Gestapo, especially in the brutal suppression of opposition: The new regime is using gestapo tactics.
Origin:
< German Ge(heime) Sta(ats)po(lizei)
< German Ge(heime) Sta(ats)po(lizei)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To gestapo
Collins
World English Dictionary
Gestapo (ɡɛˈstɑːpəʊ, German ɡeˈʃtaːpo) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| the secret state police in Nazi Germany, noted for its brutal methods of interrogation | |
| [from German Ge(heime) Sta(ats)po(lizei), literally: secret state police] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10
Gestapo
is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
| an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
Gestapo
1934, from Ger. Gestapo, from "Geheime Staats-polizei," lit. "secret state police," set up by Hermann Göring in Prussia in 1933, extended to all Germany in January 1934.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
Gestapo [(guh-stah-poh, guh-shtah-poh)]The secret police of the Third Reich in Germany. The Gestapo operated against Germans suspected of treason by using brutal interrogation and torture; they instilled widespread fear by their terrorist methods.
Note: “Gestapo tactics” in general are intimidating official procedures.
Note: Figuratively, any brutal secret police organization may be called a “gestapo.”
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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