Gestapo

Meanings

1. 1proper nounproper

   The secret police of Nazi Germany, which used terror, spying and arrests to crush opposition between 1933 and 1945.

   Grammar: Takes the: the Gestapo arrested him.

   Patterns

   • the Gestapo arrested someone

   The Gestapo arrested many resistance members during the war.

   He was questioned by the Gestapo in Berlin.

   Families lived in fear of a knock from the Gestapo.

2. 2nouncountablefigurativedisapproving

   Any secret police force or group that uses harsh, frightening methods to control people, especially in a figurative comparison.

   Grammar: Often lowercase when used loosely; careful, as it can offend.

   Patterns

   • a gestapo of something

   Critics called the new surveillance squad a gestapo, though the comparison angered historians.

   Using gestapo for a school inspector would trivialize the real crimes.

   The word is used as an insult for strict officials, which is widely considered inappropriate.

Common combinations

Nazi Gestapo

The Nazi Gestapo hunted down dissidents.

arrested by the Gestapo

Her uncle was arrested by the Gestapo in 1941.

Gestapo headquarters

Prisoners were taken to Gestapo headquarters.

Gestapo officer

A Gestapo officer searched the house.

Gestapo tactics

The film showed Gestapo tactics of interrogation.

Synonyms and how they differ

secret police

Secret police is a general term for any such force, while the Gestapo names one specific organization.

SS

The SS was a wider Nazi organization, and the Gestapo was part of its security machinery.

Stasi

The Stasi was East Germany's secret police after the war, not the Nazi one.

Word family

Gestapo proper noun

the Nazi secret state police

Geheime Staatspolizei proper noun

the German full name

gestapo-like adjective

resembling harsh secret police, an offensive comparison

Commonly confused: Gestapo or Stasi?

Practice

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