gravamen

American  

[gruh-vey-muhn] / grəˈveɪ mən /

noun

Law.

plural

gravamina

1. the part of an accusation that weighs most heavily against the accused; the substantial part of a charge or complaint.

2. a grievance.

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gravamen British  

/ ɡrəˈveɪmɛn /

noun

1. law that part of an accusation weighing most heavily against an accused

2. law the substance or material grounds of a complaint

3. a rare word for grievance

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Etymology

Origin of gravamen

1595–1605; < Late Latin: trouble, physical inconvenience, equivalent to Latin gravā ( re ) to load, weigh down (derivative of gravis heavy, burdened) + -men noun suffix

Example Sentences

"The gravamen of the claimed wrongdoing is that the Laundries exercised their constitutional rights and essentially made no statements to Plaintiffs or law enforcement," the motion states.

From Fox News • Mar. 30, 2022

“The conduct constituting the gravamen of Sachs’s suit plainly occurred abroad,’’ Roberts wrote.

From Washington Post • Dec. 1, 2015

What mattered, Chief Justice Roberts wrote, was the core, or gravamen, of the lawsuit.

From New York Times • Dec. 1, 2015

But the gravamen of the economic charge against her is the neglect of manufacturing industry.

From The Guardian • Apr. 20, 2013

There was the gravamen of the poor Highlander's charge.

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 10, No. 58, August, 1862 by Various