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Glite Dictionary
case of crim. con.

case of crim. con.

9.9
A lawsuit a husband brings because another man has sex with his wife
  • noun
  • NSFW
translation icon : caso de adulterio
  • In Victorian England, a case of crim. con. could ruin a family's reputation.

Examples

  • He filed a case of crim. con. against his wife's alleged lover.

  • The judge dismissed the case of crim. con. due to insufficient evidence.

  • The lawyer filed a case of crim. con. last week.

  • Have you ever heard of a case of crim. con.?

  • He filed a case of crim. con. against his wife's alleged lover.

  • In Victorian England, a case of crim. con. could ruin a family's reputation.

  • The judge dismissed the case of crim. con. due to insufficient evidence.

Synonyms

crim. con.
vscase of crim. con.
  • NSFW
9.9

An old legal term for having sex with someone else's husband or wife

is the full legal action name rather than an abbreviation

Surface Forms

case of crim. con. singular
cases of crim. con. plural

Morphology

case + of + crim. + con.

This is opaque: the phrase uses abbreviations ('crim. con.' for 'criminal conversation') and a historical legal term whose meaning (adultery) is not derivable from the literal words 'criminal' + 'conversation' or from 'case of'. A B1 learner who knows the constituents would likely not predict the idiomatic legal sense, so prior exposure or explanation is required.

Etymology

The legal phrase case of crim. con. comes from the old term criminal conversation, where conversation once meant sexual relations. In these cases a husband would sue the man who had relations with his wife, so the phrase means 'a legal action for adultery'.