DictionaryRoot: ad-
Latin

ad-

to, toward; addition; sometimes emphasis

Forms

  • ad-
  • ac- — Used before c in Latin.
  • af- — Used before f in Latin.
  • ag- — Used before g in Latin.
  • al- — Used before l in Latin.
  • ap- — Used before p in Latin.
  • ar- — Used before r in Latin.
  • as- — Used before s in Latin.
  • at- — Used before t in Latin.

Origin

Reconstructed Proto-Indo-European *ad, ‘to; near.’

Note

Later Latin-based spellings sometimes restored consonants that had disappeared in French.

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noun

accuser

uh-KYOO-zer/əˈkjuːzər/

A person who charges someone with wrongdoing or a crime.

The accuser presents an allegation before a neutral mediator.

Focus on the person making an allegation, standing before a seated neutral mediator and gesturing toward another adult, everyday clothing, blank folders.
Etymology

The legal-case root and person-ending identify someone who calls another to account. The noun especially denoted someone making a formal accusation before a magistrate, but also covers anyone who assigns blame.

In context

ABC News0:03
Tyler Perry accuser Derek Dixon sits down in a TV interview for the first time sharing allegations of workplace sexual assault and harassment.
Tyler Perry accuser speaks out 1st on-camera interview since filing lawsuit

More examples

  • She demanded to hear the accuser’s account.
  • The investigation tested the accuser’s claims.
  • An anonymous accuser supplied the first report.

Forms

accuser · accusers

Similar words

complainant
A complainant formally reports a grievance; an accuser asserts that someone committed wrongdoing.
prosecutor
A prosecutor conducts a criminal case; an accuser may be any person making an allegation.