allegation

noun

al·le·ga·tion | \ ˌa-li-ˈgā-shən

Definition of allegation

1 : the act of alleging something

2 : a positive assertion especially of misconduct Some former colleagues have made serious allegations against him. specifically : a statement by a party to a legal action of what the party undertakes to prove

3 : an assertion unsupported and by implication regarded as unsupportable

Examples of allegation in a Sentence

The police are investigating allegations that the mayor has accepted bribes. There have been allegations of fraud in the city government. You're making a serious allegation. Do you have any proof?

Recent Examples on the Web

Over the past two years, allegations of inappropriate behavior have reached the top levels of government. — Karla Adam, Washington Post, "Five allegations of bullying and abuse at Westminster that shocked MPs," 13 July 2019 The federal probe follows allegations of beatings and harassment by members of the Banditos, a group of deputies assigned to the Sheriff’s Department’s East L.A. station. — Julia Wick, latimes.com, "Essential California Week in Review: Secret society of tattooed sheriff’s deputies?," 13 July 2019 China’s best-selling sportswear brand Anta denied allegations levied against it by short seller Muddy Waters this week. — Eamon Barrett, Fortune, "Taking Credit From China – CEO Daily," 13 July 2019 In a three-paragraph order, the judge rejected Oracle’s allegations that potential conflicts of interest weren’t properly investigated. — Ryan Tracy, WSJ, "Pentagon Wins Lawsuit Over Massive Cloud-Computing Contract," 12 July 2019 The allegations received wide media coverage in China, including on national broadcaster CCTV, highlighting on what is believed to be a common but underreported crime affecting millions of children. — Fox News, "Chinese billionaire Wang Zhenhua arrested over child molestation allegations," 12 July 2019 In different but damning ways, though, and alongside some new information, the indictments string the allegations into a pattern. — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, "The R. Kelly Federal Indictments Describe a Conspiracy," 12 July 2019 Her office's investigation led to the charges in February and additional counts added in May. Kelly avoided prison after similar allegations were made more than a decade ago. — Author: Sara Burnett, Caryn Rousseau, Anchorage Daily News, "Feds bring new sex crime charges against singer R. Kelly," 12 July 2019 In some cases, plaintiffs also include an allegation of fraud. — Freep.com, "FREE PRESS INVESTIGATION: OUT OF GEAR Ford knew Focus, Fiesta models had flawed transmission, sold them anyway," 11 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'allegation.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.