criminal law

noun

: the law of crimes and their punishments

Examples of criminal law in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The government is also considering changes to criminal law for cases involving serious misconduct. — Jenny Lee, CNBC, 11 Nov. 2026

At a March 2026 conference in Miami, Miller argued that military force, rather than traditional criminal law enforcement alone, was needed to defeat cartels. — Nicole Sganga, CBS News, 7 Nov. 2026

Probate is fundamentally different from criminal law or complex corporate litigation. — Eric Wargotz, Baltimore Sun, 3 Nov. 2026

The chief prosecutor in local criminal courts – the titles vary, such as district attorney, prosecuting attorney, state’s attorney or county attorney – has enormous discretionary power over criminal law enforcement. — Ronald Wright, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1672, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for criminal law

• avoirdupois
• aa
• aha
• bashaw
• bradshaw
• byelaw
• bylaw
• chainsaw
• cheraw
• coleslaw
• crenshaw
• dada

Legal Definition

criminal law

noun

: public law that deals with crimes and their prosecution compare civil law

Note: Substantive criminal law defines crimes, and procedural criminal law sets down criminal procedure. Substantive criminal law was originally common law for the most part. It was later codified and is now found in federal and state statutory law.