acquitted
Americanadjective
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of acquitted
Explanation
An acquitted defendant is off the hook. If you're on trial for a crime and you're found "not guilty," then you're acquitted and you can go free. When you have been labeled acquitted, that means the jury has found you not guilty of the crime and legally blameless. The word gained notoriety in the highly publicized 1995 trial of the former football star O. J. Simpson, accused of murdering his wife and her friend. Simpson’s attorney’s mantra to the jury was "If the glove doesn't fit, you must acquit," referring to a glove connected to the murder.
Vocabulary lists containing acquitted
The Outsiders
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This Week In Words: September 28–October 4, 2019
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Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice
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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.
His attorneys have since appealed both the convictions and the sentence, arguing the judge improperly relied on allegations connected to charges for which he was acquitted when determining his punishment.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
A jury found Rogers guilty of making a false statement but acquitted him of conspiracy to commit economic espionage for China.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
In the unlikely event she is acquitted, she will equally clearly be in the race.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
The trio were acquitted by a judge at Belfast Crown Court following a non-jury trial that did not sit continuously and lasted over two years due to its legal complexity.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
But by means of the enormous wealth he had piled up and by the secret hold he had over various persons, he was acquitted on some technical inaccuracy.
From "Murder on the Orient Express" by Agatha Christie
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.
