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

An industrial tribunal found that this working pattern formed part of her contract of employment.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

Finally, she says if it is not resolved internally after a reasonable amount of time then the person should consider making a claim to an employment tribunal if they are owed outstanding wages.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

He was abducted in neighbouring Kenya in 2024 and reappeared in Uganda, where he was brought before a military tribunal until the case was transferred to a civilian court.

From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026

In the actions of all men, and especially of princes, where there is no tribunal to which to appeal, one must consider the final result.

From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli

The court is the heir to the Nuremberg tribunals that tried Nazis after World War II.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 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

As superior lord and judge of all the counts and tribunals, the emperor had a right of inspection and reformation over them.

From Secret Societies of the Middle Ages by Keightley, Thomas

Related Words

• board
• committee
• judge
• justice