convict
Americanverb (used with object)
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convicts,
present (3rd person singular)
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convicted,
past participle, past
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convicting
present participle
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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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convicts
plural
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a person proved or declared guilty of an offense.
-
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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preconvictverb (used with object)
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reconvictverb (used with object)
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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.
See Examples For:
Buchanan, 72, had been incarcerated since 2004 for kidnapping a convict who was harassing a corrupt prison guard.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
“That’s not a defense, but the reality is some jurors won’t want to convict because they feel sympathy to the defendant or they feel this is a waste of government resources.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
Although a criminal court failed to convict the players, they were banned from Major League Baseball for life.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
Reddington suggested that the holdout juror did acknowledge doubt, but still wanted to convict anyway.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026
I cried, reacting as if I were a convict and my mother a judge condemning me to death for a crime I didn’t commit.
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
New Yorker staff writer Lawrence Wright’s latest nonfiction narrative, “Redemption,” begins with an intriguing, real-life premise: an unlikely series of encounters between seven female convicts on Texas’ death row and a convent of nuns.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
A South Carolina investigator has secured warrants for cybercrimes against more than two dozen convicts across at least eight Georgia prisons.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Even charges like the ones Rojas faces can be devastating, whether or not a jury ever convicts.
From Slate ● Feb. 21, 2026
"This court finds the accused guilty of all 21 charges and convicts the accused accordingly," Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah said.
From Barron's ● Dec. 26, 2025
Both the Negro and the white convicts had sat bolt upright.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
Lagarde herself in 2016 was convicted of negligence—but spared punishment—for her involvement in a payout to a businessman when she was working as Sarkozy’s finance minister.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026
Authorities say those convicted will also face appropriate orders for forfeiture of assets and restitution to victims, in addition to any prison sentences.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
A onetime Interior secretary named Albert Fall was convicted of taking bribes from Doheny and another oilman for no-bid drilling there, and though Doheny himself was acquitted twice, his reputation never recovered.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
If convicted, Mogambi faces a mandatory prison term of at least 10 years, according to the Justice Department.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
“I mean...he was convicted for a bunch of thefts, right?”
From "Clean Getaway" by Nic Stone
Prosecutors used the recording as crucial evidence in convicting her.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Hoppock worries that by moving straight to deportation proceedings, the federal government has found a way to skip prosecuting and convicting.
From Salon ● May 14, 2026
It’s true that we don’t want juries convicting simply because they don’t like the defendant.
From Slate ● Apr. 22, 2026
The letter argued that the legal standard for convicting someone of a crime shouldn’t be used when deciding whether Khan should continue to serve as chief prosecutor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 1, 2026
When Faye died, he knew instinctively that Kate was probably responsible, but he also knew he hadn’t much of any chance of convicting her, and a wise sheriff doesn’t butt his head against the impossible.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
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