compurgation
UK/kɒmpɜːˈɡeɪʃən/
compurgation noun: acquitting someone from a formal charge or accusation following the sworn oaths of a number of other people; vindication.
Noun
compurgation (countable and uncountable, plural compurgations)
- Acquitting someone from a formal charge or accusation following the sworn oaths of a number of other people; vindication.
- Between the later middle ages and the early seventeenth century, compurgation appears to have become an increasingly onerous test to pass, perhaps reflecting tightening attitudes to sexual offenders.2012, Faramerz Dabhoiwala, The Origins of Sex, Penguin, published 2013, page 23
- Synonyms:
- absolution, acquittance, assoilment, acquitment, acquittal, disculpation, exculpation, exoneration, not guilty, quittance
Synonyms of compurgation
- absolution
- acquittance
- assoilment
- acquittal
- disculpation
- exculpation
- exoneration
- not guilty
- quittance
- vindication
1 more synonymsFewer synonyms
Forms of compurgation
| plural | compurgations |
|---|
Origin of compurgation
From Latin compurgātiōnem, from compurgāre (“to purify”).
Questions about compurgation
- What does compurgation mean?
- Compurgation means acquitting someone from a formal charge or accusation following the sworn oaths of a number of other people; vindication.
- What part of speech is compurgation?
- Compurgation is a noun.
- How do you pronounce compurgation?
- Compurgation is pronounced /kɒmpɜːˈɡeɪʃən/ (UK).
- What is the plural of compurgation?
- The plural of compurgation is compurgations.
Words near compurgation in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: compurgation (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this entry: “compurgation.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/compurgation. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.