To catch or seize someone in the act of doing something; to detect or discover someone committing a wrongdoing.
From Latin deprehendere (to catch, seize), combining de- (down, completely) and prehendere (to seize, grasp), originally meaning physically catching someone.
The term 'deprehend' is nearly extinct in English except in legal writing, but it captures a specific moment—not just committing a crime, but being caught red-handed in the act itself.
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