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A crime usually punishable upon conviction by a small fine or by a short term of imprisonment. Crimes which are punishable by large fines or by longer imprisonment are usually called felonies.Syn: petty crime
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misdemeanor
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misdemeanor — mis·de·mean·or /ˌmis di mē nər/ n: a crime that carries a less severe punishment than a felony; specif: a crime punishable by a fine and by a term of imprisonment not to be served in a penitentiary and not to exceed one year compare felony… … Law dictionary
Misdemeanor — Mis de*mean or, n. 1. Ill behavior; evil conduct; fault. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. (Law) A crime less than a felony. Wharton. [1913 Webster] Note: As a rule, in the old English law, offenses capitally punishable were felonies; all other indictable… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
misdemeanor — (n.) also misdemeanour, legal class of indictable offenses, late 15c.; from MIS (Cf. mis ) (1) wrong + M.E. demenure (see DEMEANOR (Cf. demeanor)). Related: Misdemeanors; misdemeanours … Etymology dictionary
misdemeanor — [mis΄də mēn′ər] n. [ MIS 1 + DEMEANOR] 1. Rare the act of misbehaving 2. Law any minor offense, as the breaking of a municipal ordinance, for which statute provides a lesser punishment than for a felony: the penalty is usually a fine or… … English World dictionary
Misdemeanor — For other uses, see Misdemeanor (disambiguation). Criminal law … Wikipedia
misdemeanor — noun Misdemeanor is used before these nouns: ↑assault, ↑charge … Collocations dictionary
misdemeanor — mis|de|mean|or [ ,mısdı minər ] noun count LEGAL a crime that is not as serious as a felony: His wife pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. a. MAINLY LITERARY a minor act of doing wrong … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
misdemeanor — n. to commit a misdemeanor … Combinatory dictionary
misdemeanor — misdeed / misdemeanor [n] sin, crime breach of law, criminality, dirt*, dirty deed*, dirty pool*, fault, infringement, malefaction, misbehavior, misconduct, miscue, offense, peccadillo, slipup, transgression, trespass, villainy, violation, wrong … New thesaurus
misdemeanor — /misdamiynar/ Offenses lower than felonies and generally those punishable by fine, penalty, forfeiture or imprisonment otherwise than in penitentiary. Under federal law, and most state laws, any offense other than a felony is classified as a… … Black's law dictionary
misdemeanor — /misdamiynar/ Offenses lower than felonies and generally those punishable by fine, penalty, forfeiture or imprisonment otherwise than in penitentiary. Under federal law, and most state laws, any offense other than a felony is classified as a… … Black's law dictionary
