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Synonyms

sue

1 American  
[soo] / su /

verb (used with object)

sued, suing

  1. to institute a process in law against; bring a civil action against.

    to sue someone for damages.

  2. to woo or court.

  3. Obsolete. to make petition or appeal to.

verb (used without object)

sued, suing

  1. to institute legal proceedings, or bring suit.

    She threatened to sue.

  2. to make petition or appeal.

    to sue for peace.
    Synonyms:
    pray, plead, petition, beg

  3. to court a woman.

verb phrase

  1. sue out to make application for or apply for and obtain (a writ or the like) from a court of law.

Sue 2 American  
[soo, sy] / su, sü /

noun

  1. Eugène Marie Joseph Sue, 1804–57, French novelist.

  2. a female given name, form of Susan, Susanna, Susannah.

sue 1 British  
/ suː, sjuː /

verb

  1. to institute legal proceedings (against)

  2. to make suppliant requests of (someone for something)

  3. archaic to pay court (to)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Sue 2 British  
/ sy /

noun

  1. Eugène (øʒɛn). original name Marie-Joseph Sue. 1804–57, French novelist, whose works, notably Les mystères de Paris (1842–43) and Le juif errant (1844–45), were among the first to reflect the impact of the industrial revolution on France

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • suer noun
  • unsued adjective

Etymology

Origin of sue

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English suen, siwen, from Old French sivre, from unattested Vulgar Latin sequere “to follow,” for Latin sequī

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Independent Office of Law Enforcement Review and Outreach sued the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office in 2024 over refusals to comply with a whistleblower complaint subpoena.

From Los Angeles Times

Cal/OSHA sued the Sheriff’s Department on Jan. 15 and asked a judge to intervene to force the department to hand over the documents.

From Los Angeles Times

PBS and its Lakeland, Minn., member station also sued in May.

From The Wall Street Journal

One plaintiff who sued, according to a court filing last year, is a Taiwanese woman with a student visa who had lived in the U.S. for 12 years and was applying for a green card.

From The Wall Street Journal

The ruling comes after the White House was sued by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.