prosecution

American  

[pros-i-kyoo-shuhn] / ˌprɒs ɪˈkju ʃən /

noun

prosecutions plural

1. Law.

   1. the institution and carrying on of legal proceedings against a person.

   2. the body of officials by whom such proceedings are instituted and carried on.

2. the following up of something undertaken or begun, usually to its completion.

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prosecution British  

/ ˌprɒsɪˈkjuːʃən /

noun

1. the act of prosecuting or the state of being prosecuted

2. 1. the institution and conduct of legal proceedings against a person

   2. the proceedings brought in the name of the Crown to put an accused on trial

3. the lawyers acting for the Crown to put the case against a person Compare defence

4. the following up or carrying on of something begun, esp with a view to its accomplishment or completion

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonprosecution
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• prosecutions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of prosecution

First recorded in 1555–65; from Late Latin prōsecūtiōn-, stem of prōsecūtiō “follow-up”; equivalent to prosecute + -ion

Explanation

You know the lawyers who try to make the jury believe the guy on trial for stealing the bananas actually stole the bananas? That team of lawyers is known as the prosecution. The entire process of trying to convict someone of a crime is known as the prosecution, and if convicted, you may face prosecution. Any words with the root prosecute are connected to trying to prove someone’s guilt. You might often hear about "the prosecution's case" — that's their evidence. Or you might hear about a "prosecution witness" — someone who is supposed to tell jury members something that will convince them of the defendant's guilt.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

prosecution prosecutions

More generally, he added, "this withdrawal weakens the international architecture of criminal justice and heightens fears that the perpetrators of the most serious crimes will escape any prosecution".

From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026

The prosecution of Thomas Goldstein, co-founder of SCOTUSblog, delved into his double-life as high-stakes poker player.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026

The organization also noted that the criminal prosecution remains pending.

From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2026

The prosecution said that due to the seriousness of the situation and lack of response, the soldier had made a formal complaint to North Wales Police and contacted his MP.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

He fled to Hungary and then to Israel, supposedly with bags of money—to avoid prosecution and with hope of setting up a government-in-exile.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

The number of prosecutions in Peterborough rose from one in 2024 to seven in 2025, and the city council has brought four prosecutions so far this year.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

Corporate investigations and prosecutions that were happening a few years ago “have pretty much been dialed way back,” said Evan T. Barr, a former federal prosecutor now with the law firm Reed Smith.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

Prevention happens not only through laws and prosecutions, but also through the values communities choose to uphold.

From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026

Although federal law requires the VA to publish statistics on arrests, citations, investigations and prosecutions by local agencies, the campus police website has no link to crime data.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026

But we had also learned that many D.A.’s saw attacks on correction officers as low-priority prosecutions, since the criminals were already in jail.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover

Related Words

• government
• prosecutor