What does amercement mean?

Definitions for amercement
amerce·ment

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word amercement.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. fine, mulct, amercementnoun

    money extracted as a penalty

Wiktionary

  1. amercementnoun

    A non-statutory monetary penalty or forfeiture.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Amercement, Amerciamentnoun

    The pecuniary punishment of an offender, who stands at the mercy of the king, or other lord in his court. John Cowell

    Etymology: from amerce.

    All amercements and fines that shall be imposed upon them, shall come unto themselves. Edmund Spenser, State of Ireland.

Wikipedia

  1. Amercement

    An amercement is a financial penalty in English law, common during the Middle Ages, imposed either by the court or by peers. The noun "amercement" lately derives from the verb to amerce, thus: the king amerces his subject, who offended some law. The term is of Anglo-Norman origin (Law French, from French, from Latin), and literally means "being at the mercy of": a-merce-ment (English mercy is cognate). While it is often synonymous with a fine, it differs in that a fine is a fixed sum prescribed by statute and was often voluntary, while an amercement is arbitrary. Amercements were commonly used as a punishment for minor offences (such as trespassing in the king's forest), as an alternative to imprisonment.

ChatGPT

  1. amercement

    Amercement is a financial penalty or punishment imposed by a court or other legal authority, usually as a result of a violation of law or misconduct. It is essentially a type of fine and has been used historically as a method of maintaining order and enforcing laws. Unlike a fixed penalty, the amount of amercement can often be adjusted according to the seriousness of the offence and the offender's ability to pay.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Amercementnoun

    the infliction of a penalty at the discretion of the court; also, a mulct or penalty thus imposed. It differs from a fine,in that the latter is, or was originally, a fixed and certain sum prescribed by statue for an offense; but an amercement is arbitrary. Hence, the act or practice of affeering. [See Affeer.]

  2. Etymology: [OF. amerciment.]

Wikidata

  1. Amercement

    An amercement is a financial penalty in English law, common during the Middle Ages, imposed either by the court or by peers. The term is of Anglo-Norman origin, and literally means "being at the mercy of": a-merce-ment. While it is often synonymous with a fine, it differs in that a fine is a fixed sum prescribed by statute and was often voluntary, while an amercement is arbitrary. Amercements were commonly used as a punishment for minor offenses, as an alternative to imprisonment.

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of amercement in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of amercement in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

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"amercement." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 Nov. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/amercement>.

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