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compurgator. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
compurgator, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
compurgator in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
compurgator you have here. The definition of the word
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English
Etymology
From Medieval Latin compurgator or Middle French compurgateur, from Latin compurgō (“to purify”).
Noun
compurgator (plural compurgators)
- Someone who vouches for another person's innocence, trustworthiness etc.
- (now historical, law) A character witness in canon law who swore an oath that the accused was innocent.
1971, Keith Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, Folio Society, published 2012, page 244:If a wise woman fell under suspicion from the authorities her neighbours might rally to her defence, providing compurgators in court, or drawing up certificates testifying to her innocence.
- (historical, law) An ‘oath-helper’ in Anglo-Saxon or Germanic law who testified to the character of an accused person.