subpoena or sub·pe·na [suh -pee -nuh , suh b-] Law noun the usual writ for the summoning of witnesses or the submission of evidence, as records or documents, before a court or other deliberative body.
verb (used with object), sub·poe·naed, sub·poe·na·ing. to serve with a subpoena.
Origin of subpoena 1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin sub poenā under penalty (the first words of the writ)
Related forms un·sub·poe·naed , adjective Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for subpoena Contemporary Examples of subpoena Henry Waxman did subpoena Condoleezza Rice, and she appeared once, in the fall of 2007.
Meanwhile, Wildstein is fighting a subpoena to appear before state legislators on Thursday.
On Wednesday, Airbnb filed a motion in New York State Supreme Court challenging the subpoena .
The House bill, introduced last Thursday, contains strong protection for leakers and probably would have prevented the subpoena .
At the time of the AP subpoena , Tracy Schmaler, a veteran Washington communications specialist, held the position.
Historical Examples of subpoena Say, John, couldn't you subpoena a school of mackerel for me?
No one ever had so complete an alibi; I could subpoena half Westminster.
Then the judge asked, "Major Abbott, did you subpoena this witness?"
No wonder the Shakespeareans are eager to subpoena Ben Jonson's verses.
Then he puts his hand in his inside pocket, as if to get the subpoena .
British Dictionary definitions for subpoena noun a writ issued by a court of justice requiring a person to appear before the court at a specified time
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verb -nas , -naing or -naed (tr) to serve with a subpoena
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Word Origin for subpoena C15: from Latin: under penalty
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for subpoena n. early 15c., sub pena, from Medieval Latin sub poena "under penalty," the first words of the writ commanding the presence of someone under penalty of failure, from Latin sub "under" (see sub- ) + poena , ablative of poena "penalty" (see penal ). The verb is attested from 1630s.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
An order of a court, a legislature, or a grand jury compelling a witness to be present at a trial or hearing, under penalty of fine or imprisonment. Subpoena is Latin for “under penalty.”
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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
