- 1[transitive, intransitive] prosecute (somebody/something) (for something/doing something) to officially charge someone with a crime in court The company was prosecuted for breaching the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Trespassers will be prosecuted (= a notice telling people to keep out of a particular area). The police decided not to prosecute.
- 2[intransitive, transitive] prosecute (somebody) to be a lawyer in a court case for a person or an organization that is charging someone with a crime the prosecuting counsel/lawyer/attorney James Spencer, prosecuting, claimed that the witness was lying.
- 3[transitive] prosecute something (formal) to continue taking part in or doing something They had overwhelming public support to prosecute the war.
prosecute
verbNAmE//ˈprɑsəˌkyut//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they prosecute he / she / it prosecutes
past simple prosecuted
-ing form prosecuting
Check pronunciation: prosecute