as in offenders
a person who is being sued or accused of a crime in a court of law
The jury believed that the defendant was guilty.
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Recent Examples of defendants
However, if convicted, the defendants could face over a decade in prison.
—
Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
But other prominent cases involving gruesome crimes and young defendants have seen a different outcome.
—Aysha Bagchi, USA Today, 18 Sep. 2025
Many of the plaintiffs and defendants are also parties in a lawsuit filed by the ADL in the same court last year against Iran, Syria and North Korea, which similarly accused the states of providing support to Hamas.
—Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 18 Sep. 2025
The suit names production company Kinetic Content, Netflix, production company Delirium TV, and 1-50 unnamed Does as defendants.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Sep. 2025
Nothing set forth herein constitutes a waiver of any of my client’s rights, remedies, claims or defendants at law or in equity all of which are expressly reserved.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 17 Sep. 2025
That leaves the city of Miami and Noriega, the city manager, as the two remaining defendants, according to Moreno’s latest order.
—Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2025
The declaration also names the FBI, the DOJ, and the Executive Office of the President as defendants.
—Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 11 Sep. 2025
The other defendants have also denied the charges.
—Júlia Dias Carneiro, NPR, 11 Sep. 2025
Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
But other prominent cases involving gruesome crimes and young defendants have seen a different outcome.
—Aysha Bagchi, USA Today, 18 Sep. 2025
Many of the plaintiffs and defendants are also parties in a lawsuit filed by the ADL in the same court last year against Iran, Syria and North Korea, which similarly accused the states of providing support to Hamas.
—Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 18 Sep. 2025
The suit names production company Kinetic Content, Netflix, production company Delirium TV, and 1-50 unnamed Does as defendants.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Sep. 2025
Nothing set forth herein constitutes a waiver of any of my client’s rights, remedies, claims or defendants at law or in equity all of which are expressly reserved.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 17 Sep. 2025
That leaves the city of Miami and Noriega, the city manager, as the two remaining defendants, according to Moreno’s latest order.
—Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2025
The declaration also names the FBI, the DOJ, and the Executive Office of the President as defendants.
—Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 11 Sep. 2025
The other defendants have also denied the charges.
—Júlia Dias Carneiro, NPR, 11 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defendants
Noun
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Just this morning, DHS took violent offenders off the streets with arrests for assault, DUI, and felony stalking.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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Instead of a sense of outrage leading to a search for a better solution for repeat violent offenders, her death generated calls for collective retribution and vigilante justice.—
Zeynep Tufekci,
Mercury News,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Our research suggests that the vast majority of Republican voters want to close loopholes that allow criminals and dangerous people to get their hands on guns.—
Gabby Giffords,
Time,
11 Sep. 2025
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The days of letting dangerous criminals terrorize American citizens are over.—
Dan Gooding,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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One of the suspects was found guilty of first-degree murder in June 2021, among a list of other charges, while the other suspect pleaded guilty in early 2020 to 17 counts, including murder charges.—
Ray Sanchez,
CNN Money,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Defendants.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defendants. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
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