grand jury

noun

: a jury that examines accusations against persons charged with crime and if the evidence warrants makes formal charges (as by indictment)

grand juror noun

Examples of grand jury in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In September, the DOJ secured an indictment from a Virginia federal grand jury that claimed Comey lied to Congress, an allegation Comey denied. —Aysha Bagchi, USA Today, 11 May 2026

Last month, the Walton County Sheriff's Office announced that a grand jury had returned an indictment charging Shaknovsky with second-degree manslaughter for William's death. —Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 10 May 2026

Prosecutors earlier had decided to skip a public hearing over the merits of Wyatt's case in favor of a private review by the grand jury instead. —Jarrod Wardwell, Houston Chronicle, 10 May 2026

Allen is scheduled to be arraigned Monday on charges in an indictment handed up Tuesday by a grand jury in Washington. —Michael Kunzelman, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for grand jury

• verdure
• buri
• fury

Kids Definition

grand jury

noun

: a jury that chiefly examines accusations of crime made against persons and if the evidence warrants makes formal charges on which the accused persons are later tried

Legal Definition

grand jury

noun

: a jury that examines accusations against persons charged with crime and if the evidence warrants makes formal charges on which the accused persons are later tried see also no bill and true bill at bill sense 3b, indictment compare petit jury, special grand jury