(~s)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
An ~ is a person, usually employed by a government agency, whose job is to find out whether people are obeying official regulations.
The mill was finally shut down by state safety ~s.
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2.
In Britain, an ~ is an officer in the police who is higher in rank than a sergeant and lower in rank than a superintendent.
I got on the phone to Inspector Joplin at Scotland Yard.
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3.
In the United States, an ~ is an officer in the police who is next in rank to a superintendent or police chief.
...San Francisco police ~ Tony Camileri.
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