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indulto

pardon

noun een-DOOL-toh Rare
People & Society Law

Origin: Latin indultum ('favour granted').

Also means

reprieve

Usage Note

Indulto is a formal legal term for an executive pardon that commutes or reduces a sentence without erasing the criminal record — distinct from amnistía, which wipes the record entirely. In Spain it requires a royal decree countersigned by the government. The verb is indultar ('to pardon'). The word appears frequently in political debate whenever a high-profile prisoner is released.

Examples

"El gobierno concedió un indulto al recluso."

Natural Translation

The government granted a pardon to the prisoner.

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