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Pronunciation: duh-FEN-dent

The person who is being sued in a civil litigation or the person charged with a crime in a criminal case is called the defendant.

In a criminal case, the case brought against the defendant is by the prosecutor, who acts on behalf of the state. In a civil case, the opposite of the defendant is the plaintiff.

Sample Sentence

Plaintiff sued defendant after the prosecutor failed to convict the defendant in his criminal case.

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