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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Recent Examples of defendants
By filing false tax forms, the defendants collected over $1 million in additional refunds to which they were not entitled.
—
Chase Jordan
january 10, Charlotte Observer, 10 Jan. 2026
The courtroom was filled with supporters wearing keffiyahs in solidarity with the defendants and Palestinians in Gaza.
—Ryan MacAsero, Mercury News, 10 Jan. 2026
In the indictment, the six defendants were accused of distributing cocaine, heroin, fentanyl and crack cocaine.
—Assistant Editor, Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2026
One of the 10 defendants charged was Benjamin Bowman.
—Ross Guidotti, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
Eighty-five of the defendants are of Somali descent.
—N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 9 Jan. 2026
The number of defendants has grown to 78 throughout the ongoing investigation.
—Alexandra Kukulka, Chicago Tribune, 8 Jan. 2026
Questions over repairs to agent's vehicle Exum testified about driving his vehicle to Maine after the incident, where repairs were made by a CBP mechanic before the defendants could examine the vehicle.
—Reuters, NBC news, 6 Nov. 2025
The Education and Justice departments, two of the top agencies named as defendants in the lawsuit, did not immediately return a request for comment.
—Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 25 Mar. 2025
Chase Jordan
january 10, Charlotte Observer, 10 Jan. 2026
The courtroom was filled with supporters wearing keffiyahs in solidarity with the defendants and Palestinians in Gaza.
—Ryan MacAsero, Mercury News, 10 Jan. 2026
In the indictment, the six defendants were accused of distributing cocaine, heroin, fentanyl and crack cocaine.
—Assistant Editor, Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2026
One of the 10 defendants charged was Benjamin Bowman.
—Ross Guidotti, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
Eighty-five of the defendants are of Somali descent.
—N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 9 Jan. 2026
The number of defendants has grown to 78 throughout the ongoing investigation.
—Alexandra Kukulka, Chicago Tribune, 8 Jan. 2026
Questions over repairs to agent's vehicle Exum testified about driving his vehicle to Maine after the incident, where repairs were made by a CBP mechanic before the defendants could examine the vehicle.
—Reuters, NBC news, 6 Nov. 2025
The Education and Justice departments, two of the top agencies named as defendants in the lawsuit, did not immediately return a request for comment.
—Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 25 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defendants
Noun
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Changes in the law regarding youth offenders and subsequent court rulings led a San Diego Superior Court judge on Tuesday to find that Williams fit the criteria to be resentenced.—
Teri Figueroa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Jan. 2026
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Tierney blasted the parole system's handling of repeat violent offenders.—
Carolyn Gusoff,
CBS News,
7 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The first thing to do is to reduce the damage to the United States, the inflow of guns and criminals and immigrants and drugs into the United States, the destabilizing of a key part of the Western Hemisphere.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
11 Jan. 2026
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Also, place freezes with ChexSystems and the National Consumer Telecom and Utilities Exchange to stop criminals from opening bank accounts, phone lines, or utility services in his name.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
11 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Deem fired his weapon at the suspects, but no injuries were reported, and the disturbance suspect has not been apprehended.—
Jade Jackson,
IndyStar,
2 Oct. 2025
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One of the suspects was found guilty of first-degree murder in June 2021, among a list of other charges, while the other suspect pleaded guilty in early 2020 to 17 counts, including murder charges.—
Ray Sanchez,
CNN Money,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Defendants.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defendants. Accessed 15 Jan. 2026.
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