court martial

Definition

1. Noun (countable, plural: courts martial):

   • A military court that tries members of the armed forces for offenses against military law.
   • A trial conducted by such a court.

2. Verb (transitive):

   • To try (someone) in a military court for a breach of military discipline or law.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • The officer was brought before a court martial for desertion. (A military court judged the officer for leaving his post.)
  • The sergeant faced a court martial for insubordination. (The sergeant underwent a trial by military authorities.)

• Verb:

  • The commanding officer decided to court martial the soldier for theft. (The officer initiated a military trial for the soldier.)
  • He was court-martialled for disobeying orders. (He was tried in a military court for his actions.)

Advanced Usage

• "to convene a court martial": to formally assemble a military court.

  • The general convened a court martial to hear the case. (The general officially called together a military tribunal.)

• "summary court martial": a simplified military trial for minor offenses.

  • A summary court martial handled the case of the missing equipment. (A quick military trial dealt with the minor infraction.)

• "general court martial": the highest level of military court, for serious charges.

  • The traitor was tried by a general court martial. (The most serious military court judged the traitor.)

Variants and Related Words

• Court-martial (verb, hyphenated form): same as the verb court martial.

  • They will court-martial the accused next week. (They will try the accused in a military court.)

• Court-martialled (adjective, British spelling): having been tried by a military court.

  • The court-martialled officer was discharged from service. (The officer who underwent a military trial was dismissed.)

Synonyms

• Military tribunal: a court that judges military personnel.
• Drumhead court-martial: an informal, field-based military trial (often historical).

Phrasal Verbs

(None directly applicable to "court martial" as a fixed term.)

Related Idioms

(None directly associated with "court martial" as a standalone phrase.)