Meaning & use
court-martialed
Last updated
“court-martialed” is a form of “court-martial”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitivemilitarylaw
Tried a member of the armed forces in a military court for breaking military law.
Grammar: Usually passive: be court-martialed for something. Takes a person as object.
Patterns
- be court-martialed for something
- court-martial someone
The soldier was court-martialed for disobeying a direct order.
Two officers were court-martialed after the incident.
He could be court-martialed if the charges are proven.
nouncountablemilitarylaw
A military court that tries members of the armed forces, or the trial itself.
Grammar: Plural is usually 'courts-martial' in formal use, though 'court-martials' also appears.
Patterns
- face a court-martial
- a court-martial hearing
The case went to a court-martial at the naval base.
He is facing a court-martial for his actions.
The court-martial found her not guilty.
Word forms
| base form | court-martial |
|---|---|
| third person singular | court-martials |
| past tense | court-martialed |
| past participle | court-martialed |
| -ing form | court-martialing |
| plural noun | courts-martial |
Common combinations
- be court-martialed for
- He was court-martialed for desertion.
- face a court-martial
- The sergeant could face a court-martial over the incident.
- court-martial charges
- The army dropped the court-martial charges last week.
- a court-martial hearing
- A court-martial hearing was scheduled for Monday.
Synonyms and how they differ
Commonly confused: court-martialed or martial?
court-martialed vs martial
Martial is an adjective meaning 'relating to war or soldiers' (martial law); it is not the same as the noun court-martial.
Practice
The sailor was ______ for stealing equipment from the base.
Choose one answer.
After 'was' we need the past participle 'court-martialed' to form the passive. 'Court-martial' is the base form, 'court-martialing' is the -ing form, and 'courted-martial' is not a correct form.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “court-martialed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.