# prosecute

Pronunciation: US say "PRAH-si-kyoot" /ˈpɹɑsɪkjut/; UK say "PROS-i-kyoot" /ˈpɹɒsɪkjuːt/

## Verb

1. To initiate criminal proceedings against a person accused of an offense.
   - Simple: To take someone to court for breaking the law.
   - _Regulators chose to prosecute the company for environmental violations._
   - _The district attorney prosecuted both suspects on charges of fraud._
2. To formally charge a person with an offense and bring them to trial.
   - Simple: To officially accuse someone of a crime and put them on trial.
   - _The attorney prosecuted the case before a jury over several days._
   - _Authorities must prosecute the accused fairly, presenting all evidence in open court._
3. To carry something through to completion; to pursue a task or aim all the way to the end.
   - Simple: To keep doing something until it is finished.
   - _The company resolved to prosecute its expansion plans despite the economic downturn._
   - _He prosecuted his research with single-minded determination for over a decade._
4. To pursue a claim or right through the courts in order to obtain it.
   - Simple: To go through the courts to get something you are owed.
   - _The family chose to prosecute their claim through the civil courts._
   - _He prosecuted the suit for unpaid wages over many months._

## Origin

Borrowed from Latin 'prōsecūtus', the perfect participle of 'prōsequor'. It is a doublet of 'pursue' (which came through Old French), and may be compared with 'persecute'.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/prosecute (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).