Dictionary

prosecution en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˌpɹɔs.ɪˈkjʉː.ʃən/ (Australia)
• /ˌpɹɑ.sɪˈkju.ʃən/ (General-American, dialectal) of Canada
• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˌpɹɒs.ɪˈkjuː.ʃən/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /ˌpɹɔ̟s.əˈkjʉː.ʃən/ (New-Zealand)
• /ˌpɹɒs.ɪˈkju.ʃən/ (Canada, dialectal) of the US
• /ˌpɹɒs.əˈkjʉː.ʃən/ (New-Zealand)

Etymology

Equivalent to prosecute + -ion, from Middle French prosecution, from Late Latin prōsecutio, from Latin prōsequor (“follow, pursue”), from pro- (“onward”) + sequor (“follow”) (English sequel). Compare persecution, and see more at prosecute.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) The act of prosecuting a scheme or endeavor.
   • The prosecution of the war fell to Winston Churchill.
   • Many apartheid perpetrators escaped prosecution for their persecution of black Africans and political dissidents.
2. (countable, uncountable) The institution of legal proceedings (particularly criminal) against a person.
   • Such a scandal as the prosecution of a brother for forgery—with a verdict of guilty—is a most truly horrible, deplorable, fatal thing. It takes the respectability out of a family perhaps at a critical moment, when the family is just assuming the robes of respectability: […] it is a black spot which all the soaps ever advertised could never wash off. 1892, Walter Besant, “Prologue: Who is Edmund Gray?”, in The Ivory Gate […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC:
   • The justices declared that the statute does not establish an age of consent, and declared that in future prosecutions of persons charged with "indecent assault and battery" the state will have to prove that the alleged victim did not consent to the act. 1983 December 10, Larry Goldsmith, “Massachusetts Court Rules on Age of Consent”, in Gay Community News, volume 11, number 21, page 1:
3. (countable, uncountable) The prosecuting party.
   • The prosecution case was that the men forced the sisters to strip, threw their clothes over the bridge, then raped them and participated in forcing them to jump into the river to their deaths. As he walked off the bridge, Clemons was alleged to have said: "We threw them off. Let's go." 2012 August 21, Ed Pilkington, “Death penalty on trial: should Reggie Clemons live or die?”, in The Guardian:
4. (countable, uncountable) In many countries, a legal body and institution, usually part of the state apparatus, empowered to perform prosecution. Prosecutor's Office. See Prosecutor.
   • Backed by public outrage, the prosecution requested the death penalty to be imposed on the murderer.

Forms

Deriveds

criminal prosecution · deferred prosecution agreement · malicious prosecution · prosecutional · prosecution association · nonprosecution · overprosecution · prosecution history · antiprosecution

Relateds

prosecute · persecution · sequence

Translations (46)

ru прокурату́ра (Prosecutor's Office) · de Verfolgung (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · hi वादी (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · bg обвинение (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · pl strona oskarżająca (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · it prosecuzione (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · uk обвинува́чення (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · pl prokuratura (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · fi syyte (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · uk прокурату́ра (Prosecutor's Office) · pl prokuratura (Prosecutor's Office) · ca persecució (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · tl prosekusyon (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · de Strafverfolgung f strafrechtliche Verfolgung (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · hi अभियोगी (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · cs obžaloba (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · ja 検察 (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · cs žalobce (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · uk переслі́дування (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · bg прокуратура (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · cs prokuratura (Prosecutor's Office) · it azione penale (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · be пракурату́ра (Prosecutor's Office) · es acusación (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · de verfolgende Behörde (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · es procesamiento (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · ar مُقَاضَاة (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · hy դատախազություն (Prosecutor's Office) · hi अभियोजन (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · lt prokuratūra (Prosecutor's Office) · fr parquet (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · bg прокуратура (Prosecutor's Office) · cmn 控方 (Prosecutor's Office) · ru обвине́ние (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · ja 起訴 (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · be абвінава́чванне (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · fr vindicte (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · sv åtal (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · sv åklagarsidan (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · es fiscalía (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · ru обвине́ние (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · ru сторона́ обвине́ния (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings) · ar مُلَاحَقَة قَضَائِيَّة (the institution of legal proceedings against a person) · cmn 檢方 /检方 (Prosecutor's Office) · hi अभियोक्ता (Prosecutor's Office) · de Strafverfolgungsbehörde (the prosecuting party of the institution of legal proceedings)