defendant

defendant (dɪˈfɛndənt)

—n
1.	Compare plaintiff a person against whom an action or claim is brought in a court of law

—*adj*
2.	making a defence; defending

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

defendant

c.1400, in the legal sense, from Fr. défendant, prp. of défendre (see defend). General sense of "defender" is from 1530s; earliest use in English was as a prp. meaning "defending" (eary 14c.).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage

Cultural Dictionary

defendant definition

The party that is being sued in court. (Compare plaintiff.)

Example sentences

The trial for a fifth defendant has not been scheduled.

The defendant did not look once in their direction during the entire time the

litany of his alleged crimes was being read.

The most contentious part of the bill is the proposal to allow juries to be

told of a defendant's criminal record.

They allow the use of hearsay evidence, which similarly deprives the defendant

of an opportunity to cross-examine his accuser.

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Matching Quote

"Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you again what you are to presume. [The defendant] is innocent. I am the judge. I am telling you that. Presume he is innocent. When you sit there, I want you to look and say to yourself, There sits an innocent man."

-Scott L. Turow