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 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
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
  • 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
  • But the prosecutor’s request for leniency doesn’t stop there.
    Mike Fox, Oc Register, 12 May 2025
  • 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
  • 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

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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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