as in offender
a person who is being sued or accused of a crime in a court of law
The jury believed that the defendant was guilty.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples of defendant in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Court documents made numerous references to Hamas' ties to Iran and Hezbollah and accused the defendants of orchestrating and financing an international terror campaign.
—
Robert Legare, CBS News, 3 Sep. 2024
The other defendants listed are Mohammad Al-Masri, Marwan Issa, Khaled Meshaal and Ali Baraka.
—Pierre Thomas, ABC News, 3 Sep. 2024
Of course, some lawsuits end in verdicts against the defendants.
—Charles Ornstein, ProPublica, 30 Aug. 2024
Haddix was added as a defendant to the lawsuit after Casey transferred ownership of her remaining chimpanzees to the former nurse.
—Emily Krauser, Peoplemag, 18 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for defendant 
Robert Legare, CBS News, 3 Sep. 2024
The other defendants listed are Mohammad Al-Masri, Marwan Issa, Khaled Meshaal and Ali Baraka.
—Pierre Thomas, ABC News, 3 Sep. 2024
Of course, some lawsuits end in verdicts against the defendants.
—Charles Ornstein, ProPublica, 30 Aug. 2024
Haddix was added as a defendant to the lawsuit after Casey transferred ownership of her remaining chimpanzees to the former nurse.
—Emily Krauser, Peoplemag, 18 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for defendant
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'defendant.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Thesaurus Entries Near defendant
Cite this Entry
“Defendant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defendant. Accessed 18 Sep. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share