- 1[countable, uncountable] the place where legal trials take place and where crimes, etc. are judged the civil/criminal courts Her lawyer made a statement outside the court. She will appear in court tomorrow. They took their landlord to court for breaking the contract. The case took five years to come to court (= to be heard by the court). There wasn't enough evidence to bring the case to court (= start a trial). During the court hearing, the prosecutor said she would seek maximum prison sentences. He won the court case and was awarded damages. She can't pay her tax and is facing court action. The case was settled out of court (= a decision was reached without a trial). Topic CollocationsCriminal Justicebreaking the law
- break/violate/obey/uphold the law
- be investigated/arrested/tried for a crime/a robbery/fraud
- be arrested/indicted/convicted on felony charges/on charges of rape/fraud
- be arrested on suspicion of arson/robbery/shoplifting
- be accused of/be charged with murder/homicide/four counts of fraud
- face two charges of assault and battery
- admit your guilt/liability/responsibility (for something)
- deny the allegations/claims/charges
- confess to a crime
- be granted/be refused/be released on/skip/jump bail
- stand/await/bring somebody to/come to/be on trial
- take somebody to/come to/settle something out of court
- face/avoid/escape prosecution
- seek/retain/have the right to/be denied access to legal counsel
- hold/conduct/attend/adjourn a hearing/trial
- sit on/influence/persuade/convince/advise a jury
- stand/appear/be brought before a judge
- plead guilty/not guilty to a crime
- be called to/take/put somebody on the stand/the witness stand
- call/subpoena/question/cross-examine a witness
- give/hear the evidence against/on behalf of somebody
- raise/withdraw/overrule an objection
- reach a unanimous/majority verdict
- return/deliver/record a verdict of guilty/not guilty
- convict/acquit the defendant of the crime
- secure a conviction/your acquittal
- lodge/file an appeal
- appeal (against)/challenge/uphold/overturn a conviction/verdict
- sentence somebody to 5 years in prison/2 years' probation
- carry/face/serve a seven-year/life sentence
- receive/be given the death penalty
- be sentenced to ten years (in prison/jail)
- carry/impose/pay a fine (of $3,000)/a penalty (of 14 years' imprisonment)
- be imprisoned/jailed for drug possession/fraud/murder
- do/serve time/ten years
- be sent to/put somebody in/be released from jail/prison
- be/put somebody/spend 13 years on death row
- be granted/be denied/violate (your) parole
- ⇨ more collocations at crime
- 2the court [singular] the people in a court, especially those who make the decisions, such as the judge and jury Please tell the court what happened. The court heard yesterday how the man collapsed and died after being stabbed. see contempt of court, high court, family court, juvenile court, Supreme Court
- 3[countable] a place where games such as tennis are played a tennis/squash/badminton court He won after only 52 minutes on court. see also clay court, grass court buildings
- 4[countable] = courtyard
- 5(abbreviation Ct.) [countable] used in the names of apartment buildings or of some short streets
- 6[countable] a large open section of a building, often with a glass roof the food court at the shopping mall kings/queens
- 7[countable, uncountable] the official place where kings and queens live the court of Queen Victoria He was presented to the queen at court.
- 8the court [singular] the king or queen, their family, and the people who work for them and/or give advice to them Which Word?court / court of law / courthouse
- All these words can be used to refer to a place where legal trials take place. Court and (formal)court of law usually refer to the actual room where cases are judged. Courtroom is also used for this. Courthouse is more often used to refer to the building:The prison is across the street from the courthouse.
law
it is your/someone's responsibility to take action next They've offered me the job, so the ball's in my court now.
to entertain people by telling them interesting or funny things I met Greg holding court with some tourists in a café.
to treat someone with great respect in order to gain favor with them
to say that something is completely wrong or not worth considering, especially in a trial The charges were thrown out of court.
Check pronunciation: court