codefendant
noun
co·de·fen·dant
ˌkō-di-ˈfen-dənt 
in legal circles often -ˌdant
variants
or co-defendant
plural codefendants or co-defendants
: a defendant in the same lawsuit or criminal prosecution as another defendant or group of defendants : a joint defendant
… the defendant argued that it was plain error for the trial court to have permitted the prosecution to treat his co-defendant as hostile …—
State v. Saenz, 370 P.3d 1278 (2016)
State v. Saenz, 370 P.3d 1278 (2016)Examples of codefendant in a Sentence
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The other codefendant, Demetrius Shumpert, was found guilty on three counts of first-degree murder in November.
—Wcco Staff, CBS News, 12 Dec. 2025
The evidence against Billups and his codefendants – including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and former player and coach Damon Jones – comes from electronic devices, surveillance photographs, pole camera footage, bank records and phone records, prosecutors said.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 23 Nov. 2025
Her codefendants will be tried separately in the spring of next year, FOX 13 reported.
—Jenna Sundel, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025
Judge John Robert Blakey presided over the trial of Madigan and codefendant Michael McClain.
—Joseph Nepomuceno, The Washington Examiner, 11 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for codefendant
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Wcco Staff, CBS News, 12 Dec. 2025
The evidence against Billups and his codefendants – including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and former player and coach Damon Jones – comes from electronic devices, surveillance photographs, pole camera footage, bank records and phone records, prosecutors said.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 23 Nov. 2025
Her codefendants will be tried separately in the spring of next year, FOX 13 reported.
—Jenna Sundel, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Oct. 2025
Judge John Robert Blakey presided over the trial of Madigan and codefendant Michael McClain.
—Joseph Nepomuceno, The Washington Examiner, 11 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for codefendant
Cite this Entry
“Codefendant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/codefendant. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.
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