perpétrer means “commit” | MotiTan French Dictionary

More examples

Ils ont perpétré une arnaque par téléphone hier.

They perpetrated a scam over the phone yesterday.

Someone bringing a serious crime or other reprehensible act into reality, with the act itself in focus.

commettre: To commit a crime, offense, wrongdoing, or mistake.

Signifie commettre quelque chose de répréhensible, souvent employé à la voix passive dans les récits d'événements.

The verb perpétrer descends from Latin perpetrāre, "to accomplish", a sense that French retains in a specialized context of crimes and grave wrongs.

News reports frequently use the passive form, as in "un crime a été perpétré", because the event often matters more than its perpetrator.