convict
Americanverb (used with object)
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to prove or declare guilty of an offense, especially after a legal trial.
to convict a prisoner of a felony.
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to impress with a sense of guilt.
noun
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a person proved or declared guilty of an offense.
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a person serving a prison sentence.
adjective
verb
noun
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a person found guilty of an offence against the law, esp one who is sentenced to imprisonment
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a person serving a prison sentence
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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convictableadjective
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convictibleadjective
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convictiveadjective
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unconvictingadjective
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unconvictiveadjective
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convictivelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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convictsimple
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convictssimple
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have convictedperfect
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has convictedperfect
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am convictingprogressive
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are convictingprogressive
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is convictingprogressive
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have been convictingperfect progressive
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has been convictingperfect progressive
Past
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convictedsimple
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had convictedperfect
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was convictingprogressive
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were convictingprogressive
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had been convictingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of convict
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English verb convicten, from Latin convictus, past participle of convincere, equivalent to con- “with, together” + vic-, variant stem of vincere “to overcome” + -tus past participle suffix; Middle English noun convict “(a) convict,” adjective convict “convicted,” past participle of convicten “to convince” (or directly from Latin ); see con-, convince
Explanation
A convict is a person who has been found guilty — convicted — of a crime and is serving a sentence in prison. When you convict (accent on the second syllable) someone of a crime, you find them guilty. The person is then a convict (accent on the first syllable). When the person is released from jail, he's an ex-con, that is, he's not a convict any more.
Vocabulary lists containing convict
13th Amendment (1865)
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"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 20–25
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
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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.
Convict leasing was essentially a new form of slavery that started after the Civil War and went on for decades across the South.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 19, 2022
“For example, his campaign handed out buttons referring to Debs as Convict No. 9653.”
From Slate • May 26, 2021
Convict leasing lasted into the 1920s when Southern states chose to employ their convicts directly in chain gangs to build the region’s railroads and highways.
From Salon • Dec. 7, 2019
Two years later, he escaped from what was then known as the Carroll County Convict Barracks and returned to Connecticut.
From New York Times • Sep. 21, 2016
Convict number 4,565, aged thirty-eight years . . . and in good health, was showered with three pails of cold water.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
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.
