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Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

decriminalization en · NOUN

Pronunciation

  • /diːˌkɹɪmɪnəlaɪzˈeɪʃən/
  • (Southern-England) audio
  • dēkrĭ"mĭnəlīzā'shən

Etymology

From de- + criminalization or decriminalize + -ation.

Meanings

  1. (uncountable) The act of making an activity or substance no longer criminalized (no longer a crime, subject to criminal penalties, to perform or possess). (Compare legalization, which often implies regulation.)
    • Some opponents also said federal decriminalization would contribute to more death and injury from impaired drivers using marijuana. 2020 April 12, Deirdre Walsh, “House Approves Decriminalizing Marijuana; Bill To Stall In Senate”, in NPR:
    • the decriminalization of all plant-based psychedelics
  2. (uncountable) The act of ceasing to treat a person as a criminal, by making their activities legal or no longer subjecting them to the criminal justice system (but instead possibly the mental healthcare system, etc).
    • Most sex work feminists support either the legalization or the decriminalization of sex workers. 2012, Sverre Molland, The Perfect Business? Anti-Trafficking and the Sex Trade along the Mekong, University of Hawaii Press, →ISBN, page 38:

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
decriminalisation alternative lexicographic

Antonyms

criminalization

Hypernyms

legal reclassification

Relateds

legalization

Translations (34)

cmn 非犯罪化處理 /非犯罪化处理 (turning a criminal into a non-criminal) · hu dekriminalizálás (making something no longer illegal) · de Entkriminalisierung (making something no longer illegal) · cmn 去刑事化 (making something no longer illegal) · kk қылмыссыздандыру (making something no longer illegal) · ko 비범죄화 (making something no longer illegal) · cmn 非刑事化 (turning a criminal into a non-criminal) · fr décriminalisation (making something no longer illegal) · uk декриміналіза́ція (making something no longer illegal) · vi phi hình sự hóa (turning a criminal into a non-criminal) · cmn 非犯罪化 (making something no longer illegal) · vi phi hình sự hóa (making something no longer illegal) · cmn 去刑事化 (turning a criminal into a non-criminal) · es descriminalización (making something no longer illegal) · ka დეკრიმინალიზაცია (making something no longer illegal) · fi dekriminalisointi (turning a criminal into a non-criminal) · pt descriminalização (making something no longer illegal) · nl decriminalisering (making something no longer illegal) · pt legalização (making something no longer illegal) · fi laillistaminen (making something no longer illegal) · hy ապաքրեականացում (making something no longer illegal) · pl dekryminalizacja (making something no longer illegal) · el αποποινικοποίηση (making something no longer illegal) · fr dépénalisation (making something no longer illegal) · nl decriminalisering (turning a criminal into a non-criminal) · ca descriminalització (making something no longer illegal) · cmn 除罪化 (making something no longer illegal) · ja 免罪 (making something no longer illegal) · cs dekriminalizace (making something no longer illegal) · fi dekriminalisointi (making something no longer illegal) · sv avkriminalisering (making something no longer illegal) · hu dekriminalizáció (making something no longer illegal) · it decriminalizzazione (making something no longer illegal) · ru декриминализа́ция (making something no longer illegal)