tribunal

American  

[trahy-byoon-l, trih-] / traɪˈbjun l, trɪ- /

noun

• tribunals
  plural

1. a court of justice.

2. a place or seat of judgment.

3. Also called tribune.  a raised platform for the seats of magistrates, as in an ancient Roman basilica.

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tribunal British  

/ trɪ-, traɪˈbjuːnəl /

noun

1. a court of justice or any place where justice is administered

2. (in Britain) a special court, convened by the government to inquire into a specific matter

3. a raised platform containing the seat of a judge or magistrate, originally that in a Roman basilica

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• tribunals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of tribunal

1520–30; < Latin tribūnal, tribūnāle judgment seat, equivalent to tribūn ( us ) tribune ¹ + -āl ( e ) -al ²

Explanation

A tribunal is like a court. If you've done something wrong and you get caught it's likely you'll be brought before a tribunal, although not all tribunals are there to determine guilt. Say, for example, you'd like to join a secret society. That society might convene a tribunal to determine whether you're worthy of joining. One way to remember tribunal is to focus on the tri at the beginning of the word. A tribunal is there to "try" a case. A tribunal is a group of people who oversee a trial. Your mom and dad could be a tribunal. You could also think of it as the group who oversees their tribe, which is, in fact, where the word comes from.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tribunal tribunals

But “The Real Food Show” cannot recommend a salad dressing without first convening a tribunal.

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026

The tribunal concluded in a ruling last month that Rahman's misconduct was "fundamentally incompatible with continued registration" and erased him from the medical register allowing him to work as a doctor.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

This breach of the order imposed on his work was an "aggravating" feature, the tribunal ruled, to already "significant" errors in surgery and post-op care, the hearing was told.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

The tribunal found that requiring her to work a fully flexible seven-day rota placed her at a particular disadvantage because of her childcare responsibilities.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

I can imagine what Coin’s war tribunal will do with that.

From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins

Not only could this backlog create problems in terms of access to justice, but according to Kirby, rising numbers of tribunals could have another troubling effect.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

A lot of that was gassy rambling just to fill the air—it was painful to listen to shows that usually bicker about bad trades and general managers start soberly inveighing like journalism tribunals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026

Jean-Pierre van Zyl, partner and head of employment at Square One Law agrees tribunals will play an active role in shaping precedent.

From BBC ● Apr. 16, 2026

But, they’re committed on the high seas, so to the extent there’s jurisdiction at all, this falls under the authority of federal district court or federal military tribunals.

From Slate ● Apr. 16, 2026

Fixed tribunals were established, and the limitations of the inquisitorial districts were strictly defined.

From A History of The Inquisition of The Middle Ages; volume II by Lea, Henry Charles

Related Words

• board
• committee
• judge
• justice