sue
verb (used with object)
to institute a process in law against; bring a civil action against.
sue
1 American
[soo]
/ su /
verb (used with object)
-
sues,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sued,
past participle, past
-
suing
present participle
-
to institute a process in law against; bring a civil action against.
to sue someone for damages.
-
to woo or court.
-
Obsolete. to make petition or appeal to.
verb (used without object)
-
sues,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sued,
past participle, past
-
suing
present participle
verb phrase
sue
1
British
/ suː, sjuː /
verb
-
to institute legal proceedings (against)
-
to make suppliant requests of (someone for something)
-
archaic to pay court (to)
Sue
2
British
/ sy /
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
suesimple
-
suessimple
-
have suedperfect
-
has suedperfect
-
am suingprogressive
-
are suingprogressive
-
is suingprogressive
-
have been suingperfect progressive
-
has been suingperfect progressive
Past
-
suedsimple
-
had suedperfect
-
was suingprogressive
-
were suingprogressive
-
had been suingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sue
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English suen, siwen, from Old French sivre, from unattested Vulgar Latin sequere “to follow,” for Latin sequī
Explanation
If you sue someone, you're accusing them (in court) of doing something wrong or illegal and demanding that they pay for it. Almost every time someone sues, they're looking for money. One of the last things you want to hear is "I'll sue you!" People sue for a lot of reasons. If you slipped on the ice, you could sue the sidewalk owner for not putting salt down. If you were in a car accident, you could sue the other driver. Years ago, someone sued McDonald's for scalding themselves on a cup of coffee they said was too hot. Sometimes it seems like people will find any reason to sue.
Vocabulary lists containing sue
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:
Justice Thomas continued: “So you could just as easily sue large retailers of these products?”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
The petition ostensibly focuses on the procedural issue of the parents’ standing to sue.
From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2026
In some cases, they have prompted students to sue universities that accused them of cheating in coursework.
From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026
The paper adds that the monarch has "appeared keen to distance himself from his brother's decision to sue the police", which could costs hundreds of thousands of pounds.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
They didn’t call the police, didn’t threaten to sue.
From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah
Bryant’s concept of franchising the show across different sports gave Manning the idea to do the same with “Peyton’s Places,” thereby creating spinoffs with his brother, Eli, John McEnroe, Sue Bird and others.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
By the time Coralie Fargeat’s 2024 “The Substance” reaches its gloriously grotesque climax, Demi Moore’s Elisabeth Sparkle and Margaret Qualley’s Sue have effectively fused into the spectacularly deformed creature known as Monstro Elisasue.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
For the rest of the interview, she mostly looked to the floor while Sue and Lynn answered questions.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
Sue is unfazed: “You understand people. . . . You’re canny!”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Another tree fell behind them, and Akira and Sue ducked and scrambled away from it.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
Plus: British Columbia sues OpenAI over mass school shooting and executives flock to New York to tout lowering emissions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
Plus: Disney sues FCC over license review, and Europe’s rivers are drying up, threatening its economy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Their proposed legislation also would ensure that anyone who sues over the fire doesn’t have to pay state taxes on any settlement, and that local jurisdictions are responsible for pest extermination efforts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Florida man sues Outback Steakhouse after toilet collapse.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 29, 2025
If Ziggy isn’t found, what if Mae sues us?
From "A Soft Place to Land" by Janae Marks
And after local California teachers sued, the U.S.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026
And on Friday, Goktas said she had sued three Yeni lawmakers for slander and vowed to pursue "media outlets that spread these allegations".
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Just weeks before, he and his business partner, Dina Hijazi, had been sued by two Jewish coworkers they had fired.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
Archer resigned his party post and sued the Star for libel.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
The British ambassador registered a protest, the American Embassy in Paris was stoned, and Canada sued the United States for over $386,000.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
San Diego County jumped into California’s sprawling ghost gun fight this week, suing a 3-D printing filament manufacturer it says hocks material for homespun firearms in violation of state law.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026
The other asks what a plaintiff must allege before suing over it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
The company has said it stands by its ratings — two former employees are suing it as they said they were pressured into inflating ratings to attract business.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026
The rapper is still suing the woman's former lawyers, led by Tony Buzbee.
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
“Dad is suing them for breach of contract,” she said.
From "Auggie & Me" by R. J. Palacio
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.
