lay charges
idiom
British
: to accuse someone officially of doing something illegal
Police are deciding whether to lay charges (against her).
Examples of lay charges in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The dramatic development came after lawyers for the Trump Organization spent time this week trying to persuade prosecutors not to lay charges in the case.
—
Stephen Collinson, CNN, 1 July 2021
According to figures provided by the Office of the Prosecutor General, only 18 of the 250 Russians for whom enough evidence has been gathered to lay charges are in Ukrainian custody, as prisoners of war.
—Liz Sly, Anchorage Daily News, 30 Jan. 2023
The dramatic developments in the case this week came after lawyers for the Trump Organization spent time trying to persuade prosecutors not to lay charges in the case.
—Kara Scannell, CNN, 11 Aug. 2021
Stephen Collinson, CNN, 1 July 2021
According to figures provided by the Office of the Prosecutor General, only 18 of the 250 Russians for whom enough evidence has been gathered to lay charges are in Ukrainian custody, as prisoners of war.
—Liz Sly, Anchorage Daily News, 30 Jan. 2023
The dramatic developments in the case this week came after lawyers for the Trump Organization spent time trying to persuade prosecutors not to lay charges in the case.
—Kara Scannell, CNN, 11 Aug. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lay charges.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near lay charges
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“Lay charges.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lay%20charges. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
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