acquit

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“
The jury are usually prone to acquit, as the weight of evidence is clearly with the defendant The defence that the accused innocently received the stolen property into his possession was a familiar one even in 1697, as appears by the following record taken from the Minutes of the Sessions.

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Definitions (16)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (4)

  1. transitive verb Law To free or clear from a charge or accusation.
  2. transitive verb To release or discharge from a duty.
  3. transitive verb To conduct (oneself) in a specified manner: acquitted herself well during the interview.
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Examples (50)

  • Were it even indispensable a different line of conduct should be adopted, while you and some others who are acquainted with my heart would acquit, the world and posterity might probably accuse me of inconsistency and ambition. —  Life And Times Of Washington, Volume 2
  • All I do is so par maniere d'acquit, et de si mauvaise grace, that I am surprised at the civility with which I am treated. —  George Selwyn: His Letters and His Life
  • Given that two jurors in the trial of former sheriff Mike Carona publicly said they felt pressured to acquit, what can prosecutors do? —  The Orange County Register - Homepage
  • The jury foreman goes through the facts and the law, and then you all vote either to acquit or to convict. —  LewRockwell.com
  • The juror they complained about wanted to acquit, they said. —  The Orange County Register - Homepage
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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

not-guilty ·  triable ·  randy ·  tryall

Used in the same contextWord Family

acquit:   acquitted
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English aquiten, from Old French aquiter : a-, to (from Latin ad-; see ad-) + quite, free, clear (from Medieval Latin quittus, variant of Latin quiētus, past participle of quiēscere, to rest; see kweiə- in Indo-European roots).

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. from Middle English aquiten, acwiten, from Old French aquiter, acuiter, later acquiter, “to quit, acquit, free, clear, discharge, rid of, deliver from” (Cotgrave), French acquitter = Provencal aquitar = Italian acquetare, appease, quiet, from Middle Latin *acquitare, acquietare, settle a claim, appease, quiet, from Latin ad, to, + quietare, quiet, from quietus, discharged, free, at rest, quiet: see acquiet, quiet, and quit.
 

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/əˈkwɪt/
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