| abolition |
When a government makes a law to completely end or get rid of something, it is called abolition. Abolition is the act of abolishing something, getting rid of it by passing a law against it. [1/2 definitions] |
| abolitionism |
a movement in the United States in the 1800s whose goal was to free the people who were slaves and make slavery against the law. |
| abolitionist |
An abolitionist is a person who supported the ending of slavery in the United States before and during the Civil War. Abolitionists fought hard in various ways to help the slaves become free and to make slavery against the law. The end of slavery finally came in 1865 near the end of the Civil War. |
| accessory |
a person who helps another person break the law but does not actually commit the crime. [1/2 definitions] |
| accomplice |
a person who helps another person break the law or do something wrong. |
| accuse |
When you accuse someone, you say that they have done something wrong or against the law. |
| acquit |
to free from a charge of breaking the law; declare not guilty. |
| act |
a law. [1/9 definitions] |
| adopt |
to become a parent of (a child) by law, or to accept an animal as a pet and become responsible for it. [1/3 definitions] |
| adoption |
the act of adopting a child or being adopted by law. |
| against the law |
If something is against the law, it means that the law does not permit it. It is illegal. |
| agreement |
Some agreements are a serious and special promise. If someone accepts this type of agreement, it means that they will be breaking a rule or a law if they do not do what they promise. Usually this kind of agreement is written on paper, and a person signs their name on the paper to accept it. [1/4 definitions] |
| amend |
to change or add to a law, contract, or other document. |
| amendment |
an official change made to a bill, law, or other document. |
| anarchy |
a complete lack of government or law within a country or society. [1/2 definitions] |
| annul |
to make (a legal action or contract) no longer valid under the law. |
| appeal |
If someone loses their case in a court of law, sometimes they make a request for their case to go to a higher level court. This way they have a chance to get a better result. This request to bring a case to a higher court is called an appeal. [2/6 definitions] |
| arrest |
to seize and hold or imprison for breaking the law. [2/4 definitions] |
| attorney |
An attorney is a person whose job is to give legal advice and to speak for people in a court of law. An attorney is a lawyer. |
| authority |
(usually plural) people who have this right or power by law. [1/3 definitions] |
| ban1 |
a law or rule that prohibits. [1/2 definitions] |