talion

[ tal-ee-uh n ]

/ ˈtæl i ən /

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noun

Nearby words

taliban movement, talibanize, talien, taliesin, taligrade, talion, taliped, talipedic, talipes, talipes calcaneovalgus, talipes calcaneovarus

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. 2019

Examples from the Web for talion

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.
Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science|Various

British Dictionary definitions for talion

talion

/ (ˈtælɪən) /

noun

the system or legal principle of making the punishment correspond to the crime; retaliation

Word Origin for talion

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