Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

sen·tence       (sěn'təns)  Pronunciation Key  n.   A grammatical unit that is syntactically independent and has a subject that is expressed or, as in imperative sentences, understood and a predicate that contains at least one finite verb. Law A court judgment, especially a judicial decision of the punishment to be inflicted on one adjudged guilty. The penalty meted out. Archaic A maxim. Obsolete An opinion, especially one given formally after deliberation. tr.v.   sen·tenced, sen·tenc·ing, sen·tenc·es Law To pronounce sentence upon (one adjudged guilty). See Synonyms at condemn. [Middle English, opinion, from Old French, from Latin sententia, from sentiēns, sentient-, present participle of sentīre, to feel; see sent- in Indo-European roots.] sen·ten'tial (sěn-těn'shəl) adj., sen·ten'tial·ly adv.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
sentence 

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

sentence
noun
1.	a string of words satisfying the grammatical rules of a language; "he always spoke in grammatical sentences"
2.	(criminal law) a final judgment of guilty in a criminal case and the punishment that is imposed; "the conviction came as no surprise" [syn: conviction] [ant: acquittal]
3.	the period of time a prisoner is imprisoned; "he served a prison term of 15 months"; "his sentence was 5 to 10 years"; "he is doing time in the county jail" [syn: prison term]
verb
1.	pronounce a sentence on (somebody) in a court of law; "He was condemned to ten years in prison"

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: sen·tence
Pronunciation: 'sent-^&ns, -^&nz
Function: noun
Etymology: Old French, opinion, judicial sentence, from Latin sententia, ultimately from sentire to feel, think, express an opinion
1 : a judgment formally pronouncing the punishment to be inflicted on one convicted of a crime
2 : the punishment that one convicted of a crime is ordered to receive

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concurrent sentence
: a sentence that runs at the same time as another

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consecutive sentence
: a sentence that runs before or after another

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cumulative sentence
: CONSECUTIVE SENTENCE in this entry; also : the combination of two or more consecutive sentences

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death sentence
: a sentence condemning the convicted defendant to death

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de·ter·mi·nate sentence
/di-'t&r-m&-n&t-/
: a sentence for a fixed rather than indeterminate length of time

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general sentence
: a sentence that does not allocate the punishment imposed for the individual counts on which the defendant was convicted
NOTE: General sentences are impermissible.

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in·de·ter·mi·nate sentence
/"in-di-'t&r-m&-n&t-/
: a sentence of minimum and maximum duration with the exact length to be later determined (as by a parole board)

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life sentence
: a sentence of imprisonment for the rest of the convicted defendant's life

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mandatory sentence
: a sentence that is specifically required or falls within a range required by statute as punishment for an offense mandatory sentence for distributing drugs near a school>

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presumptive sentence
: a sentence that is the presumed punishment for an offense and is subject to the upward or downward adjustment of its severity depending on aggravating and mitigating factors

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split sentence
: a sentence of which part is served in prison and the other suspended and usually replaced by probation

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suspended sentence
: a sentence the imposition or execution of which is suspended by the court

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: sentence
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: sen·tenced; sen·tenc·ing
: to impose a sentence on

Free On-line Dictionary of Computing - Cite This Source - Share This

sentence logic
A collection of clauses.
See also definite sentence.
(2003-12-04)

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Sentence

Sen"tence\, n. [F., from L. sententia, for sentientia, from sentire to discern by the senses and the mind, to feel, to think. See Sense, n., and cf. Sentiensi.]

1. Sense; meaning; significance. [Obs.]

Tales of best sentence and most solace. --Chaucer.

The discourse itself, voluble enough, and full of sentence. --Milton.

2. (a) An opinion; a decision; a determination; a judgment, especially one of an unfavorable nature.

My sentence is for open war. --Milton.

That by them [Luther's works] we may pass sentence upon his doctrines. --Atterbury. (b) A philosophical or theological opinion; a dogma; as, Summary of the Sentences; Book of the Sentences.

3. (Law) In civil and admiralty law, the judgment of a court pronounced in a cause; in criminal and ecclesiastical courts, a judgment passed on a criminal by a court or judge; condemnation pronounced by a judgical tribunal; doom. In common law, the term is exclusively used to denote the judgment in criminal cases.

Received the sentence of the law. --Shak.

4. A short saying, usually containing moral instruction; a maxim; an axiom; a saw. --Broome.

5. (Gram.) A combination of words which is complete as expressing a thought, and in writing is marked at the close by a period, or full point. See Proposition, 4.

Note: Sentences are simple or compound. A simple sentence consists of one subject and one finite verb; as, "The Lord reigns." A compound sentence contains two or more subjects and finite verbs, as in this verse:

He fills, he bounds, connects, and equals all. --Pope.

Dark sentence, a saving not easily explained.

A king . . . understanding dark sentences. --Dan. vii. 23.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Sentence

Sen"tence\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sentenced; p. pr. & vb. n. Sentencing.]

1. To pass or pronounce judgment upon; to doom; to condemn to punishment; to prescribe the punishment of.

Nature herself is sentenced in your doom. --Dryden.

2. To decree or announce as a sentence. [Obs.] --Shak.

3. To utter sententiously. [Obs.] --Feltham.