noun
1. : an action under a civil law system for the enforcement of an obligation which therefore must be brought against the person obligated
2. : an action under the common law not brought for the recovery of or involving rights in lands, tenements, or hereditaments : an action brought to enforce or recover a debt or personal duty or damages in lieu of it or damages for an injury to person or property or for the specific recovery of or enforcement of a lien upon goods or chattels — compare real action