five-o

English

Alternative forms

• 5-O, five-oh

Etymology

From the police procedural television series Hawaii Five-O (first aired in 1968), so named because it is set in Hawaii, which is the 50th U.S. state.

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Noun

five-o (uncountable)

1. (US street slang) The police. [from 1980s]
   • 1989, “Car Thief”, in Paul's Boutique, performed by Beastie Boys:

     Five-oh caught me, now I'm going to the mountains / Said good-bye to my girl, my lawyer and accountants

Usage notes

• Typically shouted as a warning of approaching police by lookouts at a site of drug-dealing etc.

Further reading

• Jonathon Green (2024) “five-oh n.”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang
• Eric Partridge (2005) “five-oh”, in Tom Dalzell and Terry Victor, editors, The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, volumes 1 (A–I), London, New York, N.Y.: Routledge, →ISBN, page 754.