as in mercy
kind, gentle, or compassionate treatment especially towards someone who is undeserving of it
a social critic who argues that judicial lenity is chiefly to blame for the increased criminality that plagues us
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Recent Examples of lenity
Twelve judges sided with Cargill and concluded that the definition of machine gun was ambiguous enough to invoke a legal principle known as the rule of lenity, which requires courts to interpret unclear criminal laws in a way that's most favorable to the defendant.
—
Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 28 Feb. 2024
The majority’s treatment of the rule of lenity also strikes a slightly sour note.
—The Insider, Forbes, 15 Apr. 2021
If the rule of lenity applies here, then Butler should not be charged with a hate crime.
—Mark Joseph Stern, Slate Magazine, 25 Apr. 2017
Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 28 Feb. 2024
The majority’s treatment of the rule of lenity also strikes a slightly sour note.
—The Insider, Forbes, 15 Apr. 2021
If the rule of lenity applies here, then Butler should not be charged with a hate crime.
—Mark Joseph Stern, Slate Magazine, 25 Apr. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lenity
Noun
-
Son Brendan was murdered with a chainsaw on Richie Stevenson’s orders while Seraphina screamed for mercy next to her half-brother; Richie had a livestream of the grisly event sent to Maeve’s phone.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
11 May 2025
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This hilarious odyssey of a parched protagonist reminds us that sometimes our relative sacrifices for the greater good can be tempered by small mercies along the way.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
9 May 2025
Noun
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But the prosecutor’s request for leniency doesn’t stop there.—
Mike Fox,
Oc Register,
12 May 2025
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The move comes amid CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s ongoing charm offensive to win over the Trump Administration, looking for leniency as Meta fights a federal antitrust lawsuit aiming to break it up.—
Danielle Chemtob,
Forbes.com,
8 May 2025
Noun
-
The brothers' defense team submitted the request for clemency in October 2024 and Newsom can grant clemency at any time.—
Emily Shapiro,
ABC News,
14 May 2025
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The parole board is expected to submit its clemency recommendation to Newsom on the June date.—
Stepheny Price , Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
14 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lenity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lenity. Accessed 23 May. 2025.
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