defendants

noun

plural of defendant
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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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of defendants The Constitution protects defendants from being prosecuted for the same crime twice, but Mangione's dueling state and federal cases fall into one of the exceptions for double jeopardy. — Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 14 Aug. 2026 The investors also allege in the suit that the defendants did not provide timely updates about the status of their investments and the company’s operations unless they were pressed. — Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 14 Aug. 2026 When those decisions go wrong, the cost lands on defendants, victims and anyone whose future turns on what an examiner finds. — Lars Daniel, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2026 Unlike the majority of criminal defendants, Williams directed his attorneys to provide no defense for him at his trial in 2024. — Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 13 Aug. 2026 Now, the defendants must answer for their actions—again—in court. — Joe Walsh, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026 One of the defendants, Edward James Porter of Berwyn, allegedly called an unnamed witness on July 31 and threatened to kill them and their family, according to an affidavit. — Josh Kelety, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2026 In a social media post, James Lee Bright, a lawyer for Rhodes, congratulated the defendants. — Carrie Johnson, NPR, 5 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defendants
  1. offenders
  2. criminals
  3. suspects
Noun
  • Law enforcement is no longer required to give first-time offenders a warning and repeat violations can cost people $2,000 to $5,000 each.
    — Tiney Ricciardi, Denver Post, 17 Aug. 2026
  • To Measure Technology’s Impact Using technology to more accurately predict technology’s impact could go a long way toward changing the discussion and holding offenders accountable.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of offenders
Noun
  • Spencer says filmmaker Douglas wanted to very much focus mostly on the women rather than talking about the criminals.
    — Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 16 Aug. 2026
  • Depending on the plan, monitoring may cover credit activity, financial accounts, investment and retirement accounts, phone takeovers, SIM swaps, utility accounts and other areas where criminals may try to use your identity.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of criminals
Noun
  • Two suspects hit several businesses in the Fairfax District early Tuesday morning, with one suspect in police custody.
    — Julie Sharp, CBS News, 6 May 2026
  • Deem fired his weapon at the suspects, but no injuries were reported, and the disturbance suspect has not been apprehended.
    — Jade Jackson, IndyStar, 25 Nov. 2025
Definition of suspects

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Cite this Entry

“Defendants.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defendants. Accessed 19 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on defendants

Nglish: Translation of defendants for Spanish Speakers

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