Meanings
plural compurgators
- Someone who vouches for another person's innocence, trustworthiness etc.
- historicallawA character witness in canon law who swore an oath that the accused was innocent.
If a wise woman fell under suspicion from the authorities her neighbours might rally to her defence, providing compurgators in court, or drawing up certificates testifying to her innocence.
1971, Keith Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, Folio Society, published 2012, page 244 - historicallawAn ‘oath-helper’ in Anglo-Saxon or Germanic law who testified to the character of an accused person.
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
- Latincompurgō“to purify”
- Middle Frenchcompurgateur
- Medieval Latincompurgator
- Englishcompurgator
From Medieval Latin compurgator or Middle French compurgateur, from Latin compurgō (“to purify”).
More words from Medieval Latin, Middle French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
compurgator. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/compurgator
“compurgator.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/compurgator. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “compurgator,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/compurgator.
Source: compurgator on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.