prosecute
Americanverb (used with object)
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prosecutes,
present (3rd person singular)
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prosecuted,
past participle, past
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prosecuting
present participle
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Law.
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to institute legal proceedings against (a person).
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to seek to enforce or obtain by legal process.
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to conduct criminal proceedings in court against.
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to follow up or carry forward something undertaken or begun, usually to its completion.
to prosecute a war.
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to carry on or practice.
verb (used without object)
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prosecutes,
present (3rd person singular)
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prosecuted,
past participle, past
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prosecuting
present participle
verb
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(tr) to bring a criminal action against (a person) for some offence
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(intr)
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to seek redress by legal proceedings
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to institute or conduct a prosecution
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(tr) to engage in or practise (a profession or trade)
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(tr) to continue to do (a task, etc)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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prosecutabilitynoun
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reprosecuteverb (used with object)
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nonprosecutableadjective
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prosecutableadjective
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quasi-prosecutedadjective
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well-prosecutedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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prosecutesimple
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prosecutessimple
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have prosecutedperfect
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has prosecutedperfect
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am prosecutingprogressive
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are prosecutingprogressive
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is prosecutingprogressive
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have been prosecutingperfect progressive
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has been prosecutingperfect progressive
Past
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prosecutedsimple
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had prosecutedperfect
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was prosecutingprogressive
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were prosecutingprogressive
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had been prosecutingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of prosecute
1400–50; late Middle English prosecuten to follow up, go on with < Latin prōsecūtus, past participle of prōsequī to pursue, proceed with, equivalent to prō- pro- 1 + secū-, variant stem of sequī to follow + -tus past participle suffix
Explanation
To prosecute is to participate in or pursue something to completion, like a government’s intention to prosecute a war. Prosecute is most often used for bringing legal action against an accused person or group. Prosecute comes from the Latin, “prosesutus,” meaning “follow after.” The legal sense of the word first appeared in the 1570s. A district attorney will often prosecute, by bringing legal charges and action against a person or group (watch any TV legal drama, and the prosecution will no doubt prosecute eventually). A company may prosecute by suing to protect against damages. Prosecute should not be confused with the word persecute, which means to harass or oppress.
Vocabulary lists containing prosecute
Commonly Confused Words, List 1
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Latin Love, Vol III: seguire
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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
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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.
See Examples For:
“There is this extraordinarily false narrative that the president wakes up in the morning and calls me and says, ‘Todd, go prosecute X or Y,’” Blanche said.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026
Because individual states have the power to prosecute crimes and order executions, much of the power lies with state governors.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Those blasting the decision to prosecute Flores include L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
“First, the possibility that he might say something false and be prosecutable for perjury under federal law. Second, possibility that something he said might conceivably be used by some state government to prosecute him criminally.”
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026
Whenever I forget to take the chicken out of the freezer, she lectures me—and then proceeds to prosecute me for forgetting to turn in my language arts essay.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Established in 2002, the ICC prosecutes individuals accused of the gravest atrocities, including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026
It investigates alleged crimes and prosecutes when evidentiary standards are met.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 22, 2026
Dibble and Alan Yochelson, head of the unit that prosecutes police officers for the district attorney’s office, declined to comment outside the courtroom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 21, 2025
The CPS, an independent body, prosecutes criminal cases in England and Wales.
From BBC ● Jan. 6, 2025
Moreover, in the stately red house at the head of Mermaid Street the author of The Awkward Age prosecutes his fascinating analyses of twentieth-century temperaments.
From Highways and Byways in Sussex by Frederick Landseer Maur Griggs
“Any bad faith attempts to influence elections should be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
A similar case in 2024 led to more than 150 people being prosecuted in Morocco.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
His attorneys have called on the government to apologize, arguing he was wrongfully prosecuted based on incomplete information.
From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026
Across the county, 35 people have been prosecuted for littering since 2023, including 19 in Cambridge.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
It pays taxes, and it can be sued and even prosecuted separately from any of the people who own or work for it.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
The district attorney’s office has been less aggressive in prosecuting those who made surreptitious recordings in the past.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026
Students for Life president Kristan Hawkins once wrote that “we state again emphatically that we oppose prosecuting women for abortion.”
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026
Medicaid Fraud Control Units were principally responsible for investigating providers, while also prosecuting the abuse and neglect of patients whose care was billed to Medicaid.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
While Blanche and others have indicated the department is focusing on prosecuting employees rather than companies, it has also granted leniency or dropped charges against people it accused of wrongdoing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
The judge turned to the prosecuting attorney and asked, “Is there a plea arrangement, Ms. Adams?”
From "City Spies" by James Ponti
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.
