acquittal

American  

[uh-kwit-l] / əˈkwɪt l /

noun

• acquittals
  plural

1. the act of acquitting; discharge.

2. the state of being acquitted; release.

3. the discharge or settlement of a debt, obligation, etc.

4. Law. judicial deliverance from a criminal charge on a verdict or finding of not guilty.

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acquittal British  

/ əˈkwɪtəl /

noun

1. criminal law the deliverance and release of a person appearing before a court on a charge of crime, as by a finding of not guilty

2. a discharge or release from an obligation, duty, debt, etc

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acquittal Cultural  

1. The judgment of a court that a person charged with a crime is not guilty.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonacquittal
  noun
• preacquittal
  noun
• proacquittal
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• acquittals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of acquittal

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English a(c)quitaille, from Anglo-French; equivalent to acquit + -al ²

Explanation

Acquittal is a legal word that defendants love to hear because it means "not guilty." In the 15th Century, an acquittal referred to the payment of a debt, but now it means being freed of charges against you in court. In fact, now the word is really used only in a legal sense. It's from the Latin ad "to" plus quitare meaning "set free." Getting an acquittal is still like being set free. Free to do what you want, any old time! So now the only time you'll need the word is in court, and it's one word you hope to hear if you've been busted.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

acquittal acquittals

But pursuing a prosecution in Scotland or the US would have been legally challenging and politically sensitive, given his acquittal by the Scottish court in 2001.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

That theory failed to win over the jury, which deadlocked 10-2 for acquittal.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Once Elle has succeeded at everything, including winning an acquittal for a sorority sister accused of murder, Warner reappears and hands her the declaration of love she originally wanted when she followed him to Harvard.

From Salon ● Jul. 6, 2026

Dennis Coronacion, chair of the political science department at Manila's University of Santo Tomas, told AFP before Cayetano's election he believed an acquittal was "highly possible" given the Senate's new makeup.

From Barron's ● May 11, 2026

They acquitted Orestes, and with the words of acquittal the spirit of evil which had haunted his house for so long was banished.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

They had moved to seek acquittals on all accounts.

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026

Unlike Simpson’s case, which ended in acquittals, the kidnapping attracted a new generation of amateur sleuths, livestreaming hours of content, conjecture and rumor each day to hundreds of thousands of online followers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026

She appealed the verdict in the hope of clearing her name, while prosecutors also did so arguing that the sentence was too lenient and the acquittals were wrongful.

From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026

Two recent misdemeanor trials against protesters charged with assaulting a federal officer both ended in acquittals.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2025

The Parodies cost him eighteen weeks’ imprisonment in the King’s Bench Prison, from which he was liberated with out trial, on the acquittals of William Hone.

From Life and Character of Richard Carlile by George Jacob Holyoake