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habeas corpus

American  
[hey-bee-uhs kawr-puhs] / ˈheɪ bi əs ˈkɔr pəs /

noun

Law.

  1. a writ requiring a person to be brought before a judge or court, especially for investigation of a restraint of the person's liberty, used as a protection against illegal imprisonment.

habeas corpus British  
/ ˈheɪbɪəs ˈkɔːpəs /

noun

  1. law a writ ordering a person to be brought before a court or judge, esp so that the court may ascertain whether his detention is lawful

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
habeas corpus Cultural  

  1. A legal term meaning that an accused person must be presented physically before the court with a statement demonstrating sufficient cause for arrest. Thus, no accuser may imprison someone indefinitely without bringing that person and the charges against him or her into a courtroom. In Latin, habeas corpus literally means “you shall have the body.”

Usage

What is habeas corpus? The writ of habeas corpus, often shortened to habeas corpus, is the requirement that an arrested person be brought before a judge or court before being detained or imprisoned.

Etymology

Origin of habeas corpus

< Latin: literally, have the body (first words of writ), equivalent to habeās 2nd-person singular present subjunctive (with imperative force) of habēre to have + corpus body

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

After their arrests, their wives filed habeas corpus petitions at the Supreme Court, challenging the legality of their detentions.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

Tortora, meanwhile, languishes in squalid jail cells and a country with only a casual regard for habeas corpus.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 19, 2026

There was a period of time. before what’s called the administrative period, where the writ of habeas corpus was the only way to challenge an order of deportation.

From Slate • Feb. 17, 2026

The family’s lawyer filed a habeas corpus complaint early last week requesting the court review the legality of Kaur’s detention.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 18, 2025

If she was incarcerated, her lawyer could file a writ of habeas corpus, which gives prisoners the right to challenge their imprisonment.

From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.