Sentence:  The term "<WSD>allocution</WSD>" refers to the personal right of a defendant to make a statement on his own behalf in an attempt to affect sentencing. . . . The word "<WSD>allocution</WSD>" is also frequently used . . . to describe the statement made by a defendant during a guilty plea proceeding. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  The question put to a convicted defendant by a judge after the rendering of the verdict in a trial, in which the defendant is asked whether he or she wishes to make a statement to the court before sentencing; the statement made by a defendant in response to such a question; the legal right of a defendant to make such a statement.