gravamen
noun
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Gravamen is not a word you hear every day (even rarer is gravamina, the less expected of its two plural forms; gravamens is the other), but it does show up occasionally in modern-day publications. It comes from the Latin verb gravare, meaning “to burden,” and ultimately from the Latin adjective gravis, meaning “heavy.” Fittingly, gravamen refers to the part of a grievance or complaint that gives it weight or substance. In legal contexts, gravamen is used to refer to the grounds on which a legal action is allowed or upheld as valid. (The word is synonymous with a legal use of gist not found outside technical contexts). Gravis has given English several other heavy words that throw their weight around more frequently, including gravity, grieve, and the adjective grave, meaning “important” or “serious.”
Examples of gravamen in a Sentence
Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 17 Jan. 2021
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Cite this Entry
“Gravamen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gravamen. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
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gravamen
noun
Medieval Latin, from Late Latin, burden, from Latin gravare to burden, from gravis heavy, grave
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