Law & Justice
Law & Justice — 20 high-frequency words, with pronunciation, collocations, easy-to-confuse words and four interactive exercises.
📌 In this lesson
🎯 Lesson goal
The legal vocabulary you see in films, series and news articles ⚖️. Twenty terms to follow a common-law trial, with distinctions that are easy to mix up: crime / offence, lawyer / solicitor / barrister, sentence / verdict. 🚀
🗂️ Word Bank
Tap 🔊 to hear the British pronunciation. The IPA transcription is under each word.
📖 Words in context
A common-law trial, in brief · tap a highlighted word to hear it.
An English criminal trial begins long before the courtroom. Police question a suspect; if there is sufficient evidence, the Crown decides whether to bring a charge. Serious cases go before a judge and a jury of twelve citizens.
In court, the prosecution presents its case first, calling each witness to give testimony. The defence, usually led by a barrister, then cross-examines them. Throughout, the presumption of innocence applies: the accused does not need to prove anything.
The jury retires and returns a verdict. If it decides to acquit, the matter ends there. If it decides to convict, the judge — not the jury — decides the sentence, taking previous offence history into account. The defendant may then appeal. It is a slow system, expensive to enforce, and visitors from other legal systems often find it strange; but the logic behind every stage is the same: doubt belongs to the accused.
🔗 Collocations & chunks
Words travel in pairs, not alone: learn the whole chunk.
| Chunk / collocation | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| stand trial | to be judged in court | He will stand trial in October. |
| press charges | to make an official complaint | She decided not to press charges. |
| beyond reasonable doubt | with no doubt that a sensible person would have | Guilt must be proved beyond reasonable doubt. |
| take legal action | to start a case in court | They threatened to take legal action. |
| serve a sentence | to spend time in prison as punishment | He served a two-year sentence. |
| in breach of the law | breaking the law | The company acted in breach of the law. |
⚠️ Easy-to-confuse words
| English word | Real meaning ✅ | Easy to mix up with ❌ |
|---|---|---|
| magistrate | a judge in a lower court | The person who brings a case against someone is a prosecutor |
| sentence | a punishment; a group of words | It has two meanings, so context decides |
| process | a series of steps; to deal with data | A criminal case in court is a trial |
| advocate | a person who supports an idea or cause | The legal professional is a lawyer, solicitor or barrister |
🎚️ Register: when to use them
| Expression | Register | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| He got two years. | informal | conversation, spoken news |
| He was sentenced to two years. | neutral | journalism and everyday use |
| The defendant was convicted on all counts. | formal | court reports, written texts |
| The court hereby orders that… | legal | court judgments and official documents |
🚫 Common mistakes to avoid
| Mistake ❌ | Correct ✅ |
|---|---|
| He was condemned to 3 years. | He was sentenced to 3 years. |
| The process starts in March. | The trial starts in March. |
| The evidences were clear. | The evidence was clear. |
| He is accused of a crime of fraud. | He is charged with fraud. |
🎮 Vocabulary gym
Four ways to practise the same 20 words. Your progress is saved on this device.
Tap the card to flip it.
Tap an English word, then its meaning. Eight pairs per round.
Complete the ten sentences with the right word. The clue under each sentence will help you.
- Driving without insurance is an .💡 Driving without insurance breaks the law.
- The was released without charge.💡 The man the police suspected was released and not formally accused.
- He faces a single of fraud.💡 He must answer one formal claim of fraud.
- The called three witnesses.💡 The lawyers who say he is guilty called three witnesses.
- The argued self-defence.💡 The lawyers for the accused said it was self-defence.
- Her was outstanding in court.💡 Her lawyer who speaks in higher courts was outstanding in court.
- A key refused to appear.💡 A key person who saw the crime refused to appear.
- Her lasted four hours.💡 What she said in court lasted four hours.
- The deliberated for two days.💡 The group of citizens took two days to decide.
- The was unanimous.💡 The decision of the jury was agreed by everyone.