n. One of the ordinary police, whose duty it usually is to patrol a certain beat for a fixed period, for the protection of property and for the arrest of offenders, and to see that the peace is kept.n. In entomology, a soldier-ant.n. In coal-mining, a wood or iron guard around or covering the mouth of a pit, or placed at mid-workings.n. A kind of swab, used for cleaning vials, etc., made by slipping a piece of rubber tubing over the end of a glass rod.