Delatio

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A formal accusation or denunciation made to authorities
2. The act of informing on someone, often involving a betrayal of trust
3. An official report or notification regarding a crime or wrongdoing to relevant parties

Etymology: The Latin noun "delatio" comes from "deferre," meaning "to carry away" or "to bring down" (de- "down" plus ferre "to carry"), and in Roman legal usage the verb came to mean "to report" or "to bring a charge before a magistrate." A "delatio" was therefore a formal accusation, and a "delator" was the person who made one. Under the emperors, especially in the first to fourth centuries CE, informers who denounced their fellow citizens for treason, known as the laesae maiestatis charges, could earn a share of the confiscated property, which made the delator one of the most hated figures in Roman life. The English word, which is used for the act of informing, was borrowed directly from Latin and is recorded only rarely in English, so it reads as a learned and somewhat archaic term. Its sense of betrayal comes from the Roman practice rather than from the Latin verb itself, which was neutral and simply meant carrying a case forward.

Synonyms: report, denunciation, accusation

Antonyms: concealment, withholding