Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Popular Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

sentence

 - 6 dictionary results

sen⋅tence

  [sen-tns] noun, verb, -tenced, -tenc⋅ing.
Use sentence in a Sentence
–noun
1. Grammar. a grammatical unit of one or more words, bearing minimal syntactic relation to the words that precede or follow it, often preceded and followed in speech by pauses, having one of a small number of characteristic intonation patterns, and typically expressing an independent statement, question, request, command, etc., as Summer is here. or Who is it? or Stop!
2. Law.
a. an authoritative decision; a judicial judgment or decree, esp. the judicial determination of the punishment to be inflicted on a convicted criminal.
b. the punishment itself.
3. Music. a period.
4. Archaic. a saying, apothegm, or maxim.
5. Obsolete. an opinion given on a particular question.
–verb (used with object)
6. to pronounce sentence upon; condemn to punishment.
Origin:
1175–1225; (n.) ME < OF < L sententia opinion, decision, equiv. to sent- (base of sentīre to feel) + -entia -ence; (v.) ME: to pass judgment, decide judicially < OF sentencier, deriv. of sentence

Related forms:
sen⋅tenc⋅er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To sentence
sen·tence   (sěn'təns)   
n.  

  1. 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.

  2. Law

    1. A court judgment, especially a judicial decision of the punishment to be inflicted on one adjudged guilty.

    2. The penalty meted out.

  3. Archaic A maxim.

  4. 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.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

sentence 
c.1290, "doctrine, authoritative teaching," from O.Fr. sentence (12c.), from L. sententia "thought, meaning, judgment, opinion," from sentientem, prp. of sentire "be of opinion, feel, perceive" (see sense). Loss of first -i- in L. by dissimilation. Meaning "punishment imposed by a court" is from c.1300; that of "grammatically complete statement" is attested from 1447, from notion of "meaning," then "meaning expressed in words." The verb meaning "to pass judgment" is recorded from c.1400.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Legal Dictionary

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
concurrent sentence
: a sentence that runs at the same time as another
consecutive sentence
: a sentence that runs before or after another
cumulative sentence
: CONSECUTIVE SENTENCE in this entry; also : the combination of two or more consecutive sentences
death sentence
: a sentence condemning the convicted defendant to death
de·ter·mi·nate sentence
/di-'t&r-m&-n&t-/
: a sentence for a fixed rather than indeterminate length of time
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.
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)
life sentence
: a sentence of imprisonment for the rest of the convicted defendant's life
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>
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
split sentence
: a sentence of which part is served in prison and the other suspended and usually replaced by probation
suspended sentence
: a sentence the imposition or execution of which is suspended by the court

Main Entry: sentence
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: sen·tenced; sen·tenc·ing
: to impose a sentence on
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Computing Dictionary

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

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
Cite This Source
Search another word or see sentence on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way