phrasal verb / idiom · formal
bring to book
/brɪŋ tə bʊk/bring·to·BOOK
task2speaking
to make someone face punishment or be called to account, often legally
Examples
“The authorities promised to bring those responsible to book.”
“Corrupt officials were finally brought to book after the investigation.”
“Victims demanded that the company be brought to book for negligence.”
Band 8 sentence
“International watchdogs vowed to bring corrupt transnational firms to book, pursuing legal action across borders.”
Collocations
- bring someone to book
- bring someone to book for
Word family
bring (v) verbbrought (v, past) verb
Common mistakes
bring to book someone→bring someone to book
bring to booked→bring to book
Say it for a higher band
5punish→6hold accountable→7+bring to book
Synonyms
prosecute
hold accountable
Easily confused
prosecute
“The company was prosecuted for violating safety regulations.”
Related words
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