bring to book

verb

To penalise someone for a punishable offence.

“The perpetrators of this atrocity must be brought to book.”

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Meanings

verbbring to book (third-person singular simple present brings to book, present participle bringing to book, simple past and past participle brought to book)

present singular third person brings to book · participle present bringing to book · participle past brought to book · past brought to book

  1. UKTo penalise someone for a punishable offence.

    The perpetrators of this atrocity must be brought to book.

    3 more examples

    It was a little matter of unauthorized and incendiary correspondence between a person who claimed to be the ultimate authority in all matters of the Mohammedan religion throughout the world, and a younger member of a royal house who had been brought to book for kidnapping women within British territory.

    1901, Rudyard Kipling, Kim

    For the most part this happens in Britain, but there can be chilling lapses in the most serious cases, as was seen in the pall thrown over Blair Peach's killing for 30 years, and in the failure to bring the Met to book over the de Menezes case, other than through health and safety laws.

    2011 May 4, Ian Tomlinson, “Unlawfully killed by the law”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 10 Mar 2016

    [Indira] Jaising is openly irritated that she was brought to book after being credited with landmark human rights cases and helping to draft India's domestic violence law.

    2024 February 17, John Reed, “Modi is supposed to represent all of us”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 3

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with bring to book

booklooktookoutlookhookbrookbrookeshookkochoverlookchinookcrooklogbookrookmookchookovercookblookjookchequebookabrookby hook or by crookCorner BrookGlenburnie-Birchy Head-Shoal Brook
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

bring to book. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bring%20to%20book

MLA

“bring to book.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bring%20to%20book. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bring to book,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bring%20to%20book.

Source: bring to book on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.