capital punishment

American  

[kap-i-tl puhn-ish-muhnt] / ˈkæp ɪ tl ˈpʌn ɪʃ mənt /

noun

1. punishment by death for a crime; death penalty.

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capital punishment British  

noun

1. the punishment of death for a crime; death penalty

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capital punishment ¹ Cultural  

1. The death penalty for a crime.

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capital punishment ² Cultural  

1. The infliction of the death penalty as punishment for certain crimes. (See capital offense.)

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In the United States, capital punishment has been an extremely controversial issue on legal, moral, and ethical grounds. In 1972, the Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was not, in principle, cruel and unusual punishment (and not, therefore, unconstitutional), but that its implementation through existing state laws was unconstitutional. In 1976, the Supreme Court again ruled that the death penalty was not unconstitutional, though a mandatory death penalty for any crime was. Thirty-nine states now practice the death penalty.

Etymology

Origin of capital punishment

First recorded in 1575–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

capital punishment

Lebanon's parliament has voted to abolish the death penalty, a move that would make it the first country in the Middle East to formally end capital punishment.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

Prosecutors have not indicated whether they intend to pursue capital punishment.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

The court has labeled capital punishment cases only since the October 2017 term.

From Salon ● Jul. 3, 2026

And for a judge eager to expand this nation’s use of capital punishment, there is no time like the present to get on with that task.

From Slate ● Jul. 1, 2026

Supreme Court had grown impatient with challenges to capital punishment.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson