無罪

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: The spelling is 無罪, read むざい, and it combines 無, meaning absence, with 罪, meaning guilt or crime.
• Basic usage: 無罪 is the legal state or finding that no guilt is established or that a defendant did not commit the alleged crime.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• A proven finding and a claim made in court
  • Both examples use the form 無罪. A finding established by new evidence differs from a defendant continuing to assert innocence while the case is being heard.
• Proof from new evidence and a fictional defendant's plea
  • 新しい証拠によって被告の無罪が証明された。 — New evidence proved the defendant not guilty.
  • 小説の主人公は法廷で無罪を主張し続けた。 — The protagonist of the novel continued to maintain their innocence in court.