convict
Americanverb (used with object)
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to prove or declare guilty of an offense, especially after a legal trial.
to convict a prisoner of a felony.
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to impress with a sense of guilt.
noun
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a person proved or declared guilty of an offense.
-
a person serving a prison sentence.
adjective
verb
noun
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a person found guilty of an offence against the law, esp one who is sentenced to imprisonment
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a person serving a prison sentence
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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convictibleadjective
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preconvictverb (used with object)
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reconvictverb (used with object)
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unconvictingadjective
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unconvictiveadjective
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convictableadjective
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convictiveadjective
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convictivelyadverb
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have convictedperfect
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has convictedperfect 3rd person singular
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are convictingprogressive
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have been convictingperfect progressive
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has been convictingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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am convictingprogressive 1st person singular
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convictssingular 3rd person
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is convictingprogressive 3rd person singular
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convictingparticiple
Past
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had convictedperfect
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was convictingprogressive singular
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convictedparticiple
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were convictingprogressive plural
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convictedsimple
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had been convictingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of convict
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English verb convicten, from Latin convictus, past participle of convincere, equivalent to con- “with, together” + vic-, variant stem of vincere “to overcome” + -tus past participle suffix; Middle English noun convict “(a) convict,” adjective convict “convicted,” past participle of convicten “to convince” (or directly from Latin ); see con-, convince
Explanation
A convict is a person who has been found guilty — convicted — of a crime and is serving a sentence in prison. When you convict (accent on the second syllable) someone of a crime, you find them guilty. The person is then a convict (accent on the first syllable). When the person is released from jail, he's an ex-con, that is, he's not a convict any more.
Vocabulary lists containing convict
13th Amendment (1865)
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"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 20–25
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“It is now time for the defendant, Robert Kelly, to pay for his crimes. Convict him.”
From Seattle Times • Sep. 23, 2021
“It is now time for the defendant to pay for his crimes. Convict him.”
From New York Times • Sep. 23, 2021
“For example, his campaign handed out buttons referring to Debs as Convict No. 9653.”
From Slate • May 26, 2021
Convict leasing lasted into the 1920s when Southern states chose to employ their convicts directly in chain gangs to build the region’s railroads and highways.
From Salon • Dec. 7, 2019
“Could I make a guess, I wonder,” said the Convict, “at your income since you come of age! As to the first figure now. Five?”
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
