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recognizance

 - 4 dictionary results

re⋅cog⋅ni⋅zance

  [ri-kog-nuh-zuhns, -kon-uh-]
–noun
1. Law.
a. a bond or obligation of record entered into before a court of record or a magistrate, binding a person to do a particular act.
b. the sum pledged as surety on such a bond.
2. Archaic. recognition.
3. Archaic. a token; badge.
Use recognizance in a Sentence
Origin:
1350–1400; ME reconissaunce, recognisance < OF reconuissance. See recognize, -ance
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To recognizance
re·cog·ni·zance   (rĭ-kŏg'nĭ-zəns, -kŏn'ĭ-)   
n.  

  1. Law

    1. An obligation of record that is entered into before a court or magistrate, containing a condition to perform a particular act, such as making a court appearance.

    2. A sum of money pledged to assure the performance of such an act.

  2. A recognition.

  3. Archaic A pledge; a token.


[Middle English recognisanze, from Old French recognuissance, alteration (influenced by Medieval Latin recognizāre, to recognize) of reconoissance, from reconoistre, reconoiss-, to recognize; see recognize.]
re·cog'ni·zant adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

recognizance 
c.1386, reconyssaunce, from O.Fr. reconissance "acknowledgment, recognition" (Fr. reconnaissance), from prp. stem of reconoistre (see recognize).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: re·cog·ni·zance
Pronunciation: ri-'käg-n&-z&ns
Function: noun
Etymology: Anglo-French recognisance reconisance, literally, recognition, from Old French reconoisance, from reconoistre to recognize, from Latin recognoscere
1 : an obligation entered into on the record before a court or magistrate requiring the performance of an act (as the paying of a debt) usually under penalty of a money forfeiture; also : the sum liable to forfeiture
2 : a simple personal obligation or undertaking (as to appear in court) entered into before a magistrate and having no money penalty attached recognizance>
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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