defendant
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defendant¹
- /dɪˈfɛnd.ənt/
Where it comes from
From Middle English defendaunt (“defending; defending in a suit”), borrowed from Old French defendant, present participle of defendre, from Latin dēfendere.
adjective more defendant · most defendant · defendaunt
- Serving, or suitable, for defense; defensive, defending. Thus comes the English with full power upon us; And more than carefully it us concerns To answer royally in our defences. Therefore the Dukes of Berri and of Bretagne, Of Brabant and of Orleans, shall make forth, And you, Prince Dauphin, with all swift dispatch, To line and new repair our towns of w
defendant²
- /dɪˈfɛnd.ənt/
Where it comes from
From Middle English defendaunt (“defendant in a suit; defender”), borrowed from Old French defendant, nominalisation of defendant; see above.
noun defendants · defendaunt
-
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.
404(b)—including a series of domestic abuse incidents defendant perpetrated against victim, a PFA against defendant by victim, and other third-party PFAs entered against defendant to protect other women—as well as evidence from[…]
Similar: respondent
- In criminal proceedings, the accused. Unintended mathwashing occurs when the algorithm is left unchecked, and, learning from historical data, amplifies social bias. The U.S. justice system uses an algorithm called COMPAS to determine a criminal's likelihood to re-offend. COMPAS has been proven by Pro Publica to predict that black defend
Opposite: plaintiff, claimant, prosecutor
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: accused, suspect, defence, defense, defender, detainee, prisoner, buyer, convict, charge, acquittal, indictee, claimant, respondent, accuser, applicant
noun
Opposite: plaintiff, claimant, prosecutor
Translations
Every language
noun person prosecuted or sued, the accused
| Español | acusado, acusada |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 피고 pigo, 피고인 pigoin |
| 日本語 | 被告 hikoku |
| 中文 | 被告 bèigào |
| हिन्दी | अभियुक्त abhiyukt, प्रतिवादी prativādī |
| Português | réu, ré, acusado, acusada |
| Français | inculpé, inculpée, défendeur, défenderesse |
| Deutsch | Angeklagter, Angeklagte, Angeschuldigter, Angeschuldigte, Beschuldigter, Beschuldigte |
| Italiano | imputato, imputata, accusato, accusata |
| Ελληνικά | εναγόμενος enagómenos, εναγομένη enagoméni, κατηγορούμενος katigoroúmenos, κατηγορουμένη katigorouméni |
| Русский | обвиня́емый obvinjájemyj, обвиня́емая obvinjájemaja, отве́тчик otvétčik, отве́тчица otvétčica, подсуди́мый podsudímyj, подсуди́мая podsudímaja |
| Tiếng Việt | bị cáo, bị đơn |
| العربية | مُدَّعًى عَلَيْهِ muddaʕan ʕalayhi, مُتَّهَم muttaham, مُتَّهَمَة muttahama |
| עברית | נאשם \ נֶאֱשָׁם ne'eshám, נאשמת \ נֶאֱשֶׁמֶת ne'eshémet |
noun party responding to the complaint
| हिन्दी | प्रतिवादी prativādī |
|---|---|
| Italiano | convenuto, controparte |
Talk about this word "defendant." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/defendant. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. defendant. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/defendant "defendant." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/defendant.Cite this
@misc{defendant_2026,
title = {defendant},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/defendant},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
