indictable
起訴可能な
解説 Definition
法律上、起訴や告発の対象となりうる犯罪行為であること。
If an offense is indictable, it is serious enough to be formally charged and tried in a higher court. This is a legal word used in criminal law. It describes crimes that are treated more seriously than minor offenses.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
indictable は in- を気にするより indict + -able で固めると覚えやすい。まず indict を「正式に罪を問う」と押さえ、-able で「そうできる」。日常会話より法文書で使われ、an indictable offense / crime の形が定番。convicted が「有罪になった」後の状態なのに対し、indictable はまだ裁判前でも「起訴対象になりうる」段階を指す。indicated など見た目の近い語と混同せず、law・offense と一緒に思い出す。
See it as `indict + -able`. If someone can be formally charged, the case is `indictable`, so the word often appears in phrases like `indictable offense`. Do not confuse it with `convicted`: `indictable` is about being able to charge someone, not about already proving guilt.
例文
Fraud on this scale is an indictable offense that could lead to years in prison.
この規模の詐欺は起訴可能な犯罪であり、数年の懲役刑につながる可能性がある。
The lawyer warned his client that the charges against him were indictable and extremely serious.
弁護士は依頼人に、彼に対する容疑は起訴可能であり極めて深刻だと警告した。
Under the new legislation, certain cybercrimes became indictable offenses for the first time.
新しい法律のもとで、特定のサイバー犯罪が初めて起訴可能な犯罪となった。
indictable の類義語・関連語
類義語
indictable の語源・成り立ち Etymology
indict は古フランス語を経てラテン語 indicere「公に告げる」にさかのぼり、in- + dicere「言う」の系統です。dictate や indicate と同じ dic- をもち、-able が付くので、『罪状を公式に言い立てられる』つまり『起訴可能な』と腑に落ちます。
Indictable comes from indict plus the suffix -able. Indict goes back through Old French to Latin indicere, meaning "to declare" or "announce," from in- and dicere, "to say," the same root seen in dictate and indicate. So the word originally suggests something that can be formally stated as a charge in law.
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