accusation
n. countablen. a statement saying that someone has done something wrong or illegal. You use this when you blame someone for a crime or a bad action before it is proven.
n. a formal charge or claim that someone has committed a specific fault, crime, or offence. Often carries legal weight in a courtroom context or social weight in interpersonal disputes.
He denied the accusation that he stole the money.
The lawyer presented evidence to support the accusation of fraud against the company director.
The witness remained steadfast under cross-examination, refusing to retract her accusation despite the defense's attempts to discredit her memory of the incident.
First attested in the late 14th century. Inherited from Middle English accusacion, borrowed from Old French acusacion (French: accusation), from Latin accūsātiō (“accusation, indictment”), from accūsō (“blame, accuse”). Doublet of accusatio. More at accuse. Equivalent to accuse + -ation.
Commonly takes the preposition 'of' to specify the crime and 'against' to specify the person charged.
an accusation for theftan accusation of theftThe noun accusation is followed by the preposition 'of' when naming the specific crime or wrongdoing.