defending
Origin of defendant
Middle English defendaunt from Old French defendant, present participle of defendreLaw the defending party; person sued or accused
noun
The definition of a defendant is a person being sued or accused of a crime.
An example of a defendant is someone accused of driving under the influence.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"defendant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant>.
APA Style
defendant. (n.d.). Retrieved February 09th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant
defendant
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"defendant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant>.
APA Style
defendant. (n.d.). Retrieved February 09th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant
defendant
noun
LawThe party against which an action is brought.
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"defendant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant>.
APA Style
defendant. (n.d.). Retrieved February 09th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant
Noun
(plural defendants)
- (law) In civil proceedings, the party responding to the complaint; one who is sued and called upon to make satisfaction for a wrong complained of by another.
- (law) In criminal proceedings, the accused.
Adjective
(comparative more defendant, superlative most defendant)
- Serving, or suitable, for defense; defensive.
Origin
See also: défendantFrom Anglo-Norman
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"defendant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant>.
APA Style
defendant. (n.d.). Retrieved February 09th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant
defendant - Legal Definition
n
In a criminal trial, the
accused; in a civil proceeding, the person or entity against whom a claim is
made.
Webster's New World Law Dictionary Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"defendant." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant>.
APA Style
defendant. (n.d.). Retrieved February 09th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Defendant
Sentence Examples
- When a divorce is granted, the defendant is not permitted to marry other than the plaintiff for three years, unless the plaintiff dies.
- When a defendant was of rank superior to that of the plaintiff, distress had to be preceded by troscad (=fasting).
- 22 Similarly in Job the bne Elohim, sons of God, appear as attendants of God, and amongst them Satan, still in his role of public prosecutor, the defendant being Job.
- A libel suit he instituted in London against Sir Valentine Chirol for statements made in Indian Unrest (1910) ended in a verdict for the defendant with costs (Feb.
- The judges at Babylon seem to have formed a superior court to those of provincial towns, but a defendant might elect to answer the charge before the local court and refuse to plead at Babylon.
» more...
WORDS NEAR defendant IN THE DICTIONARY
- defendant
- defencively
- defend
- defendable