prosecutor
- 01 C1 Advanced
a lawyer who represents the government in a court of law to prove someone committed a crime.
a legal official who conducts criminal proceedings on behalf of the state or the public interest.
Simple“The prosecutor presented new evidence to the jury during the trial.”
In context“The lead prosecutor argued that the defendant's financial records provided a clear motive for the alleged embezzlement.”
UsageThe noun is countable and often used with the definite article when referring to the lead official in a specific case.
Synonymsprosecuting attorneystate attorneyAntonymsdefense attorney - 02 C2 Proficiency
the person or group that starts a legal case against someone else.
the party who institutes a criminal or civil proceeding; may refer to a private complainant in certain legal systems.
Simple“In some legal systems, a private citizen can act as a prosecutor.”
In context“The court must determine if the private prosecutor has sufficient standing to bring these charges forward without state support.”
UsageIn modern common law, this more general sense is often replaced by 'complainant' or 'plaintiff' in civil contexts.
SynonymsAntonyms
1590s, from Medieval Latin prosecutor, from prōsequor (English prosecute). By surface analysis, prosecute + -or.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.