Question

perjury Found guilty of perjury for lying under oath in front of a Congressional committee, he was sentenced to two years in prison. ˈpərʤəri

Accepted Answer

The crime of telling a lie under oath. The prefix per- in Latin often meant “harmfully.” So witnesses who perjure themselves do harm to the truth by knowingly telling a lie. Not all lying is perjury, only lying under oath; so perjury generally takes place either in court or before a legislative body such as Congress. To avoid committing perjury, a witness or defendant may “take the Fifth”: that is, refuse to answer a question because the answer might be an admission of guilt, and the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution forbids forcing a citizen to admit to being guilty of a crime.

word	perjury
definition	The crime of telling a lie under oath.
eg_sentence	Found guilty of perjury for lying under oath in front of a Congressional committee, he was sentenced to two years in prison.
explanation	The prefix per- in Latin often meant “harmfully.” So witnesses who perjure themselves do harm to the truth by knowingly telling a lie. Not all lying is perjury, only lying under oath; so perjury generally takes place either in court or before a legislative body such as Congress. To avoid committing perjury, a witness or defendant may “take the Fifth”: that is, refuse to answer a question because the answer might be an admission of guilt, and the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution forbids forcing a citizen to admit to being guilty of a crime.
IPA	ˈpərʤəri

Perjury Lying Telling Guilty Answer Crime Lie Oath