acquit

[ uh-kwit ]

/ əˈkwɪt /

||

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WATCH NOW: What Does "Acquit" Actually Mean?

WATCH NOW: What Does "Acquit" Actually Mean?

Armchair lawyers and judges will remember this phrase from the 90s: If the glove doesn't fit, you must acquit! But, what does "acquit" actually mean?

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verb (used with object), ac·quit·ted, ac·quit·ting.

to relieve from a charge of fault or crime; declare not guilty: They acquitted him of the crime. The jury acquitted her, but I still think she's guilty.

to release or discharge (a person) from an obligation.

to settle or satisfy (a debt, obligation, claim, etc.).

to bear or conduct (oneself); behave: He acquitted himself well in battle.

to free or clear (oneself): He acquitted himself of suspicion.

Nearby words

acquirer, acquis communautaire, acquisition, acquisition accounting, acquisitive, acquit, acquittal, acquittance, acr-, acral, acraldehyde

Origin of acquit

1200–50; Middle English aquiten < Anglo-French, Old French a(c)quiter, derivative, with a(c)- ac-, of quite free of obligations < Medieval Latin quit(t)us, Latin quiētus quiet¹; cf. quit¹

SYNONYMS FOR acquit

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ANTONYMS FOR acquit

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Related formsac·quit·ter, nounpre·ac·quit, verb (used with object), pre·ac·quit·ted, pre·ac·quit·ting.un·ac·quit·ted, adjective

Can be confusedacquitted innocent nolo contendere (see synonym study at innocent)

Synonym study

1. See absolve.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for acquit

She and many others believed that Tuesday, when the court ruled to acquit all 13 defendants, was that day.
Argentina Erupts Over Acquittal in Marita Verón Case|Scott C. Johnson|December 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST
But based on the testimony, the evidence and the language of the law, it would have been hard for me to vote to acquit.
If Porn Isn’t Art, Does It Still Have a Right to Exist?|Michael Stabile|May 2, 2012|DAILY BEAST
And it shows they were almost unanimously inclined to acquit right from jump.
Casey Jury Brainwash|Marcia Clark|July 8, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Consequently he at once remarked, "So the Republic will not acquit me under the law of treason as it did you!"
The Letters of Cicero, Volume 1|Marcus Tullius Cicero

Thus there was a deficiency of a million in what I had relied upon to acquit former engagements.
The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Volume XII|Various
In that matter touching the Orley Farm estate he could acquit his mother instantly,—with acclamation.
Orley Farm|Anthony Trollope
And on this the judge had to instruct the jury that they must acquit the prisoner.
The Doctor's Dilemma: Preface on Doctors|George Bernard Shaw
We acquit many of the leading and most respectable manufacturers from being participators in any such scheme.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 68, No. 417, July, 1850|Various

British Dictionary definitions for acquit

acquit

/ (əˈkwɪt) /

verb -quits, -quitting or -quitted (tr)

(foll by of)

to free or release (from a charge of crime)
to pronounce not guilty

(foll by of) to free or relieve (from an obligation, duty, responsibility, etc)

to repay or settle (something, such as a debt or obligation)

to perform (one's part); conduct (oneself)

Derived Formsacquitter, noun

Word Origin for acquit

C13: from Old French aquiter, from quiter to release, free from, quit

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012