Definition of "recrimination" [re•crim•i•na•tion]

• The act of recriminating. (noun)
• A countercharge. (noun)
• Law A defense in an action for divorce in which the accused party makes a similar accusation, as of adultery or cruelty, against the plaintiff. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Either course of action will bring short-term howls of recrimination from the right ... but this mini-surge deeper into the quagmire is going to sink the administration without question. declining 35 percent approval rating for management of the war in Afghanistan"
• "A recrimination is a counter-charge, and is typically legalese and is only used in court, by a defendant against a plaintiff."
• ""recrimination" - said the Folkstone-based agency had assured her the couple moving into her two-bedroom property were pleasant and well behaved."