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

That documentary earned the Sundance Film Festival’s short film grand jury award and will premiere on Netflix later this year. —Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 27 Apr. 2026

As of Monday, 20 of the defendants had been cleared, either through a grand jury refusing to indict, the dismissal of charges by prosecutors, or, in the one case that went to trial, a not guilty verdict by a jury. —Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 27 Apr. 2026

They were charged after a federal grand jury in New Haven returned a 20-count indictment on April 8. —Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 24 Apr. 2026

He was indicted by a Delaware County grand jury on the seven felony charges April 16. —Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 24 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for grand jury

• 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