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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

capital punishment

Beyond some states’ move away from capital punishment, factors include more-robust defense counsel, fewer death sentences from juries and the exoneration of more than 200 condemned inmates, DPI Executive Director Robin Maher said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026

Matthew Robinson, a criminal justice professor at Appalachian State University and author of a book on U.S. capital punishment titled “Death Nation,” said he was “appalled” by the plans.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026

Meanwhile, Tennessee's proponents of capital punishment have suggested that a different method be used.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Lee suspended the carrying out of capital punishment in the southern state following the failed execution pending an independent investigation.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

So even in a death penalty advocate’s best-case scenario, capital punishment could explain only one twenty-fifth of the drop in homicides in the 1990s.

From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt

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