attorney
Americannoun
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a lawyer; attorney-at-law.
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an attorney-in-fact; agent.
noun
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a person legally appointed or empowered to act for another
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a lawyer qualified to represent clients in legal proceedings
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a solicitor
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of attorney
1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French attourne literally, “(one who is) turned to,” i.e., “(one who is) appointed,” past participle of attourner “to attorn ”
Explanation
An attorney is a lawyer. Attorneys sue people, defend people, and serve as experts on the law. When there's any kind of legal issue, attorneys will be involved. They're the legal experts with law degrees who are also known as "lawyers." You'll often find them in court, defending clients or trying to put criminals in jail. Attorneys work for businesses, schools, the government, and individuals. So if you get arrested, need to write a will, or have to hash out a binding contract, an attorney is the person to call.
Vocabulary lists containing attorney
Monster
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Occupations
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Flush
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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.
