pågripe

Pågripe is a verb used in Scandinavian legal language to describe the act of detaining or arresting a person suspected of a crime. The term is most commonly associated with Danish, where the standard infinitive is pågribe; in Norwegian and Swedish, cognate verbs exist with similar meanings, often rendered as gripe or gripa. The non-diacritic spelling "pågripe" may appear in multilingual texts or transcriptions but the canonical form in Danish is pågribe.

Etymology and language notes: The word derives from the verb gribe/gripa meaning to grab or seize, with a prefix that in Danish signals an action directed at someone. It is related to cognates across North Germanic languages and to the broader Germanic root meaning to seize or take hold.

Usage and context: The act is performed by law enforcement officers as part of criminal procedure. In Danish legal writing, the term appears in phrases describing the act of apprehending a suspect, such as "at pågribe en mistænkt." The exact legal conditions for arrest and the procedures involved vary by jurisdiction, but the core idea is lawful deprivation of liberty for investigation or charging purposes.

See also: Arrest, detention, police procedure, legal terminology.