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

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Etymology

Origin of acquittal

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

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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

On Saturday, tens of thousands of people had rallied in Pristina to demand the acquittal of Thaci and other former guerrilla leaders.

From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026

Now that a mistrial has been declared, that does not equate to an acquittal.

From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026

Backers say the limits avoid saddling arrestees with a digital scarlet letter that can cause lasting harm in employment and housing even after an acquittal or dismissal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

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

Kelsie Morrison had earlier told agents that Hale was certain that “money will buy the protection or acquittal of any man for any crime in Osage County.”

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

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

More than a third of the cases The Times analyzed ended in dismissals or acquittals, in some instances because the defendants were deported.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 1, 2025

But that narrow federal reprieve does not cleanse the stain of the state acquittals.

From Slate ● May 9, 2025

Mistaken acquittals by these courts were beyond correction, for in the South slaves like freemen could not be twice put in jeopardy for the same offense.

From American Negro Slavery A Survey of the Supply, Employment and Control of Negro Labor as Determined by the Plantation Regime by Ulrich Bonnell Phillips

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