gravamen

[gruh-vey-muhn]

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.

gravamen

/ 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

Word History and Origins

Origin of gravamen¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of gravamen¹

C17: from Late Latin: trouble, from Latin gravāre to load, from gravis heavy; see _grave ²

Example Sentences

He continued: “Here, 12 jurors unanimously found Defendant guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records with the intent to defraud, which included an intent to commit or conceal a conspiracy to promote a presidential election by unlawful means. It was the premeditated and continuous deception by the leader of the free world that is the gravamen of this offense.”

Read more on Slate

The gravamen of the disqualification attempt is that Willis hired Wade because they were involved romantically, and she wanted to benefit financially from his hourly compensation, which Roman claims is excessive.

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"They are a sovereign instrumentality of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and a sitting minister of the Saudi government, and they cannot be compelled to provide testimony and documents in a US proceeding unless their conduct - not LIV's or anyone else's - is truly the 'gravamen' of the case."

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The statement of confessional difficulty, sometimes also called a “gravamen,” was needed after the annual synod of the Christian Reformed Church this summer voted to codify its opposition to homosexual sex.

Read more on Washington Post

If they cannot, they will be expected to submit a gravamen to the Professional Status Committee and the Board of Trustees before they are hired.

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