delict

[dih-likt]

See more synonyms for delict on Thesaurus.com

noun

Law. a misdemeanor; offense.
Roman and Civil Law. a civil wrong permitting compensation.

Origin of delict

1515–25; < Latin dēlictum a fault, noun use of neuter of dēlictus (past participle of dēlinquere to do wrong; see delinquency), equivalent to dēlic- fail + -tus past participle suffix

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for delict

malfeasance, immorality, infringement, infraction, dereliction, misdeed, wrongdoing, lawlessness, misconduct, atrocity, criminality, illegality, depravity, delinquency, transgression, case, violation, felony, misdemeanor, evil

Examples from the Web for delict

Historical Examples of delict

The words contravention, crime, and delict were of no value.
Bouvard and Pcuchet, part 2
Gustave Flaubert
The "natural" sources of liability were delict and contract.
An Introduction to the Philosophy of Law
Roscoe Pound
We have written to our son touching our vassal's delict, and he must abide his doom, which will most likely be death.
The Abbot
Sir Walter Scott
Another point of Gregorian emphasis: no delict is remitted without punishment.
The Mediaeval Mind (Volume I of II)
Henry Osborn Taylor
No delict is wiped out without penitence and punishment, in this life or afterwards—let it be in Purgatory and not in Hell!
The Mediaeval Mind (Volume I of II)
Henry Osborn Taylor

British Dictionary definitions for delict

delict

noun

law, mainly Scots law a wrongful act for which the person injured has the right to a civil remedySee also tort
Roman law a civil wrong redressable by compensation or punitive damages

Word Origin for delict

C16: from Latin dēlictum a fault, crime, from dēlinquere to fail, do wrong; see delinquency

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

Word Origin and History for delict

1520s, from Latin delictum "fault, offense, crime," neuter singular of past participle of delinquere (see delinquent). Phrase in flagrant delict translates Latin in flagrante delicto.