lawsuit
Americannoun
-
lawsuits
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of lawsuit
Compare meaning
How does lawsuit compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A lawsuit is the result of a disagreement that ends up in court. A long-running feud between neighbors about a flock of chickens and a barking dog might eventually end up as a lawsuit. If someone files a lawsuit against you, you become a defendant, while they are the plaintiff. Lawsuits are always part of civil law, rather than criminal cases, involving something some kind of financial or personal loss. When you're embroiled in a lawsuit, you'll probably need to hire a lawyer. This legal term dates from the 17th century.
Vocabulary lists containing lawsuit
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In September 2022, Salazar filed a class-action lawsuit, arguing that Paramount violated the VPPA.
From Slate ● Oct. 17, 2026
Earlier in the year Arizona retained outside counsel and set aside money for a potential lawsuit.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Whatever happens, the lawsuit will still tell a powerful story.
From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026
Although the lawsuit focused on immigration courthouses, the ruling also covered state criminal courthouses, restoring earlier restrictions that barred civil immigration arrests in or near courthouses except in limited circumstances.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
Any lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a state law was supposed to be heard by a panel of three judges in a federal court—that was the rule.
From "Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice" by Phillip Hoose
“As people like to say in the basin, lawsuits aren’t going to generate any water,” Mr. Udall says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Several lawsuits are pending against Gardner, USA Gymnastics and Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute, a prominent training facility West Des Moines, Iowa, that hired Gardner as a youth coach in 2018.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
Until now, the only lawsuits filed over the disaster had targeted public authorities.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
The app also uses agentic AI capabilities to cancel unwanted subscriptions, haggle bills and find class-action lawsuits on behalf of users.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
The minute after that I’ve got tax problems and employee difficulties and threats of lawsuits and greedy relatives no one’s ever heard of before and I’m sick to death of being rich.
From "Lawn Boy Returns" by Gary Paulsen
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
