amnesty
[ am-nuh-stee ]
/ ˈæm nə sti /
noun, plural am·nes·ties.
a general pardon for offenses, especially political offenses, against a government, often granted before any trial or conviction.
Law. an act of forgiveness for past offenses, especially to a class of persons as a whole.
a forgetting or overlooking of any past offense.
verb (used with object), am·nes·tied, am·nes·ty·ing.
to grant amnesty to; pardon.
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Origin of amnesty
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for amnesty
British Dictionary definitions for amnesty
amnesty
/ (ˈæmnɪstɪ) /
noun plural -ties
a general pardon, esp for offences against a government
a period during which a law is suspended to allow offenders to admit their crime without fear of prosecution
law a pardon granted by the Crown or Executive and effected by statute
verb -ties, -tying or -tied
(tr) to overlook or forget (an offence)
Word Origin for amnesty
C16: from Latin amnēstia, from Greek: oblivion, from amnēstos forgetting, from a- 1 + -mnēstos, from mnasthai to remember
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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