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

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.

From Washington Post • Nov. 3, 2022

"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

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

From New York Times • Dec. 1, 2015

But are hipsters the gravamen here or victims of circumstances, when steady job prospects are remote and social premium is placed on a good coffee high?

From The Guardian • Sep. 20, 2014

This, however, is the true gravamen of the quarrel of the Whigs with Lord Ellenborough.

From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine — Volume 53, No. 330, April 1843 by Various