witness protection
59
3.9
- noun
- /ˈwɪtnəs prəˈtɛkʃən/
:
protección de testigos
- The government established the witness protection program to shield witnesses from potential threats during trials.
- witness protection program
- federal witness protection
- go into witness protection
I did kidnappings, witness protection, I I loved my job and I was really good with vulnerable people.
- I did kidnappings, witness protection, I I loved my job and I was really good with vulnerable people.
- Yo, Theo, this is anonymous in witness protection in Kentucky.
Examples
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I think my parents were in the Witness Protection Program.
Blog text (5) -
My dad got put in Witness Protection Program, so we're just laying low for a little while.
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Are you in some kind of Witness Protection plan?
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No, l am not going into the witness protection program with you.
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I want protection, I want to be in the Witness Protection program.
Fiction book (1997) -
British law enforcement has begun to hide women in a program equivalent to the U.S. federal witness protection program.
Academic text (2009) -
Unless you are in the witness protection program, that just isn't healthy.
Blog text (3) -
Hey, Lucy, there's always the Witness Protection Program - if you need it.
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Spence enters the Witness Protection Program.
Blog text (13) -
The federal government lured them into the Witness Protection Program with the promise of safety, and they went gratefully.
Blog text (14)
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun combines two concrete, high-frequency words whose meanings directly indicate the concept: 'witness' (someone who testifies) and 'protection' (safeguarding). A B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer it refers to measures to keep witnesses safe (even if they might not know all legal program details), so the expression is compositionally transparent.
Etymology
Witness protection gives a simple picture: a person who saw a crime, a witness, is put under careful protection, moved to a new place and given a new name to keep them safe. So, 'witness protection' means a program that hides and protects people who must tell what they saw in court.