警察官 and 警官 - is there any difference?

[ichaize]

Hello,

My dictionary has both 警官 (keikan) and 警察官 (keisatsukan) as policeman. I would like to know if one of them is more commonly used, or if there is any difference between them. Is 警官 slightly less formal because it's shorter? Is it a regional thing (like policeman/police officer in the UK or US)?

Thanks for you help

[community.japanese]

ichaize san,
Konnichiwa.

Is 警官 slightly less formal because it's shorter? I

Yes, that is right.
警官 is an abbreviation of 警察官.
You can use them interchangealby.
Yuki 　由紀
Team JapanesePod101.com