plaintiff
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
- plaintiffship noun
Etymology
Origin of plaintiff
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English plaintif “complaining person,” noun use of the adjective; plaintive
Explanation
In a courtroom, the plaintiff is the person or group who is accusing another person or group of some wrongdoing. If you’re the plaintiff, you are claiming that a law was broken, and you’re in court to present your case. The plaintiff accuses, the defendant tries to prove that accusation wrong. You’ve seen this relationship on television shows about lawyers, or maybe you’ve been to court yourself. The Old French root word translates as “complain” and the Latin root is literally “beating of the breast,” or explaining your grief in a dramatic way. Plaintiff shares roots with the adjective plaintive, which describes a sorrowful sound. The plaintiff made a plaintive cry when the defendant was declared not guilty.
Vocabulary lists containing plaintiff
Twelve Days in May
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A Tale of Two Cities
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Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
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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.
The lawsuit said the plaintiff has suffered “severe emotional distress, including anxiety, humiliation, loss of standing in his community and harm to his professional relationships” as a result of his squabble with Ye.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026
A plaintiff like Gonzalez needs to show that law enforcement lacked even probable cause for an arrest.
From Slate • Apr. 6, 2026
That’s more than just innocence: A plaintiff must demonstrate that an arrest was inherently unreasonable and that police lacked even a reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing.
From Slate • Apr. 6, 2026
The plaintiff was awarded $6 million in damages, with Meta responsible for 70% of that amount and Google’s YouTube on the hook for the remainder.
From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026
“I was right next to the plaintiff when this incident occurred,” Danny says, standing next to me.
From "Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish" by Pablo Cartaya
Definitions 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.
