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talion

[tal-ee-uh n]
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noun
  1. lex talionis.
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Origin of talion

1375–1425; < Latin tāliōn- (stem of tāliō) exaction of compensation in kind; replacing late Middle English talioun < Anglo-French < Latin, as above
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for talion

Historical Examples

  • In the primitive code of the talion nothing was more simple—an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth—thou hast killed; I kill thee.

    South America To-day

    Georges Clemenceau

  • But it is to be questioned whether the rule of talion is the right one for the Kabyles.

British Dictionary definitions for talion

talion

noun
  1. the system or legal principle of making the punishment correspond to the crime; retaliation
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Word Origin

C15: via Old French from Latin tāliō, from tālis such
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012