true bill
1
9.9
- noun
- /tru bɪl/
- Jargon
:
acusación formal
- After a lengthy review, the grand jury issued a true bill allowing the prosecutor to move forward with the case.
- true bill of indictment
- jury returned a true bill
- return a true bill
Examples
-
The grand jury delivered a true bill after examining the evidence presented in court.
-
They returned a no true bill on each of the five claims.
-
We know that too, but you're asking for a true bill.
-
A few true bills and convictions, even better.
Blog text (27) -
I can remember the surprise that the grand jury even found a true bill; when the clerk read the indictment, the betting was 20 to one that the jury would not be out 10 minutes.
Fiction book (1993) -
The judge confirmed that the true bill was essential for bringing the matter to trial.
Synonyms
3
9.9
An official accusation a grand jury makes without a prosecutor's request
1
8.6
A written charge by a government lawyer saying someone committed a crime
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a specialized legal term whose sense ('an indictment by a grand jury') cannot be derived by a B1 learner from the ordinary meanings of 'true' (genuine) and 'bill' (commonly a legislative proposal or invoice). The phrase is archaic and domain-specific, and the common senses of the constituents create a misleading literal interpretation, so learners who only know the parts would not predict the legal meaning.
Etymology
The noun true bill comes from old courts where jurors wrote true on a written charge called a bill when they thought there was enough evidence. The word bill was the paper charge and 'true' meant 'valid', so a true bill means the case can 'go to trial'.