penal code
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of penal code
First recorded in 1880–85
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.
Under the islands’ penal code, a single fender-bender with an endemic animal can carry severe consequences.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
In fall 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law AB 847, which amended the penal code to allow oversight commissions to receive confidential sheriff’s department documents and review them in closed session.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
The interim government is prosecuting Atef Najib under the 1949 penal code, a statute written for ordinary murder, not for crimes against humanity.
From Slate ● May 27, 2026
The punishment for which in Colombia is a prison sentence of between 26 to 45 years, according to the country's penal code.
From Barron's ● Jan. 28, 2026
The Russian penal code imposes the same penalty for disfiguring the eyes of an imperial portrait as it does for blinding a live subject of the Czar.
From The White Terror and The Red A novel of revolutionary Russia by Cahan, Abraham
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.
