Definition of "subpoena" []

• A writ requiring appearance in court to give testimony. (noun)
• To serve or summon with such a writ. (verb-transitive)

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.

• "Protection against contempt for refusing a subpoena is a far cry from being immune to a search warrant."
• "Working on my motion to quash this week, I was wondering if I was just delusional in thinking that the facts in this case area really, really clearly on my side, and that this subpoena is abusively broad."
• "So the issuance of a subpoena is a simple task, done hundreds of thousands of times a day across the country."