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Of or pertaining to punishment, to penalties, or to crimes and offenses; pertaining to criminal jurisprudence: as:

The quality or state of being penal; lability to punishment. Sir T. Browne.

To make penal.

In a penal manner.

Penal retribution; punishment for crime or offense; the suffering in person or property which is annexed by law or judicial decision to the commission of a crime, offense, or trespass. Death is the penalty imposed. Milton.

An absolving, or setting free from guilt, sin, or penalty; forgiveness of an offense. "Government . . . granting absolution to the nation." Froude.

To free from a penalty; to pardon; to remit (a sin); -- said of the sin or guilt. In his name I absolve your perjury. Gibbon.

passed for the protection of those who have committed some illegal act subjecting them to penalties. Abbott. -- Act in pais, a thing done out of court (anciently, in the country), and not a matter of record.

The act of adjuring; a solemn charging on oath, or under the penalty of a curse; an earnest appeal. What an accusation could not effect, an adjuration shall. Bp. Hall.

To charge, bind, or command, solemnly, as if under oath, or under the penalty of a curse; to appeal to in the most solemn or impressive manner; to entreat earnestly. Joshua adjured them at that time, saying, Cursed be the man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho. Josh. vi. 26. The high priest…

The fine and penalty imposed for the offense of adultery.

To assess or reduce, as an arbitrary penalty or amercement, to a certain and reasonable sum. Amercements . . . were affeered by the judges. Blackstone.

To make a solemn declaration, before an authorized magistrate or tribunal, under the penalties of perjury; to testify by affirmation.

A solemn declaration made under the penalties of perjury, by persons who conscientiously decline taking an oath, which declaration is in law equivalent to an oath. Bouvier.

To punish by a pecuniary penalty, the amount of which is not fixed by law, but left to the discretion of the court; as, the amerced the criminal in the sum on the hundred dollars.

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.] Blacksto…

To attach or connect, as a consequence, condition, etc.; as, to annex a penalty to a prohibition, or punishment to guilt.

privilege of naming the trump and playing with the dummy for that deal, there being heavy penalties for a player's failure to make good his bid. The score value of each trick more than six taken by the successful bidder is as follows: when the trump is spades, 2; clubs, 6; diamonds, 7; hearts, 8; royal spades (lilies),…

A pecuniary mulct or penalty laid upon a delinquent for offending against a ban; as, a mulct paid to a bishop by one guilty of sacrilege or other crimes. Ban of the empire (German Hist.), an imperial interdict by which political rights and privileges, as those of a prince, city, or district, were taken away.…

A penalty at beast, omber, etc. Hence: To be beasted, to be beaten at beast, omber, etc. Beast royal, the lion. [Obs.] Chaucer.