English · Phrasal verb Attested

police up

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

To clean up an area or an item or person, usually in preparation for an inspection; to police an area for problems.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

dọn dẹp khu vực hoặc vật phẩm

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Where it’s used: Used American English

We have to police up the grounds before the end of the day.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “police up” mean?

To clean up an area or an item or person, usually in preparation for an inspection; to police an area for problems.

Is “police up” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

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