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policy

/ˈpɑ.lə.si/noun, verb

policy is spelled P-O-L-I-C-Y: 6 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 148 times per million words in written English, the 697th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, policy means “A principle of behaviour, conduct which an entity (government, organization, etc.) applies or seeks to follow, especially as formally expressed by an…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of policy is policies.

How many letters and syllables are in policy?

Letters6: P-O-L-I-C-Y
Syllables3 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing148 times per million words; the 697th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is policy?

Policy appears 148 times per million words in written English, the 697th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce policy?

  • UK /ˈpɒl.ə.si/
  • UK /ˈpɒl.ɪ.si/
  • US /ˈpɑ.lə.si/

Policy has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-policy.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of policy

  • policies plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • policying participle, present
  • policied participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does policy mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    A principle of behaviour, conduct which an entity (government, organization, etc.) applies or seeks to follow, especially as formally expressed by an authoritative body.

    The Communist Party has a policy of returning power to the workers.

  2. 2

    A document describing such a policy.

    Please print extra copies of this policy and post them where it will be easy for everyone to see.

  3. 3

    Wise, advantageous, or politic conduct; prudence, formerly also with connotations of craftiness.

  4. 4

    archaicSpecifically, political shrewdness or (formerly) cunning; statecraft.

  5. 5

    ScotlandThe grounds of a large country house.

  6. 6

    obsoleteThe art of governance; political science.

  7. 7

    obsoleteA state; a polity.

  8. 8

    obsoleteA set political system; civil administration.

  9. 9

    A contract of insurance.

  10. 10

    A document containing or certifying this contract.

    Your insurance policy covers fire and theft only.

  11. 11

    obsoleteAn illegal daily lottery in late nineteenth and early twentieth century USA on numbers drawn from a lottery wheel (no plural)

  12. 12

    A number pool lottery

verb

  1. 1

    To regulate by laws; to reduce to order.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Policy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchpolitique (principle of conduct), police (law: insurance document)
GermanPolitik, Handlungsgrundsatz, Vorgehensweise, Verfahrensweise, Richtlinie (principle of conduct), Geschicklichkeit (prudent conduct)
Portuguesepolítica (principle of conduct), apólice (law: insurance document)
Spanishpolítica, norma (principle of conduct), póliza (law: insurance document)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does policy come from?

From Middle English policie, from Old French policie, pollicie and police, from Late Latin politia (“citizenship; government”), classical Latin polītīa (in Cicero), from Ancient Greek πολιτεία (politeía, “citizenship; polis, (city) state; government”), from πολίτης (polítēs, “citizen”). Doublet of police, polis (“police”), and polity.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

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