a string of words satisfying the grammatical rules of a language; he always spoke in grammatical sentences'

(criminal law) a final judgment of guilty in a criminal case and the punishment that is imposed; the conviction came as no surprise

[ Syn: conviction , judgment of conviction , condemnation ]

the period of time a prisoner is imprisoned; he served a prison term of 15 months; his sentence was 5 to 10 years; he is doing time in the county jail

[ Syn: prison term , time ]

pronounce a sentence on (somebody) in a court of law; He was condemned to ten years in prison

[ Syn: condemn , doom ]