VocabularyBasePractice words

Meaning & use

kangaroo court

noun·Advanceddisapproving

Last updated

UK/ˌkæŋɡəˈruː ˈkɔːt/
US/ˌkæŋɡəˈruː ˈkɔːrt/
Usage warning: this word is disapproving. It shows a negative opinion, so take care with who and what you use it about.

Meanings

  1. nouncountabledisapproving

    A mock trial or unofficial body that ignores fair procedure and decides guilt before hearing the evidence.

    Grammar: Used about unfair groups or panels: the committee was a kangaroo court.

    Patterns

    • a kangaroo court of something
    • hold a kangaroo court
    • be tried by a kangaroo court

    Critics called the hearing a kangaroo court because the verdict was decided in advance.

    The workers refused to appear before what they saw as a kangaroo court.

    In the novel, the villagers set up a kangaroo court to punish the stranger.

  2. nouncountablefigurativeinformal

    Any meeting or inquiry that treats a person unfairly and seems set on condemning them, even though it is not a real court.

    Grammar: Figurative: used of public pile-ons or committees.

    Patterns

    • turn into a kangaroo court

    The online comment section became a kangaroo court within minutes.

    He felt the staff meeting was a kangaroo court aimed at forcing him out.

    Fans accused the league's panel of running a kangaroo court.

Word forms

pluralkangaroo courts

Common combinations

a kangaroo court
The trial was nothing more than a kangaroo court.
run a kangaroo court
Soldiers ran a kangaroo court in the camp.
kangaroo court proceedings
Observers condemned the kangaroo court proceedings.
face a kangaroo court
He feared he would face a kangaroo court.
accuse of a kangaroo court
The union accused the board of a kangaroo court.

Synonyms and how they differ

sham trial
A sham trial looks like a real one but is a fake; kangaroo court stresses disregard for fair rules.
show trial
A show trial is staged for public effect, often by a state, while a kangaroo court can be small and informal.
witch hunt
A witch hunt is a campaign to find and punish people, not necessarily a mock trial.
mock trial
A mock trial can be harmless practice, whereas kangaroo court is a harsh criticism.

Opposites

fair trialdue process

Word family

court noun
a place or body that decides legal cases
kangaroo noun
the Australian animal that hops
tribunal noun
a body that judges disputes
court-martial noun
a military trial

Commonly confused: kangaroo court or mock trial?

kangaroo court vs mock trial

A mock trial is a practice exercise, often in schools, with no intent to harm; a kangaroo court is a real unfair process.

Practice

Why did the writer call the committee a kangaroo court?

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “kangaroo court”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Your sentence stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.

Explore more words