tribunal

noun

tri·​bu·​nal trī-ˈbyü-nᵊl How to pronounce tribunal (audio)
tri-
1
: a court or forum of justice
2
: something that decides or determines
the tribunal of public opinion
3

Examples of tribunal in a Sentence

An international tribunal was formed to deal with war crimes. was tried before a military tribunal and found not guilty of the charges
Recent Examples on the Web In 2016, in a case brought by the Philippines, an international tribunal in the Hague ruled that China’s claim to historic rights to the bulk of the sea had no legal basis. Rebecca Wright, CNN, 6 Mar. 2024 This use of equality law is currently being tested in the first legal case of its kind in the U.K. A social worker in the city of Leicester launched an employment tribunal after leaving her job back in 2018. Katherine Hignett, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024 The Canadian tribunal in this case came down on the side of the customer, ruling that Air Canada did not ensure its chatbot was accurate. Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 19 Feb. 2024 The tension between the tribunal and the Attorney General escalated again on November 30th, when the four judges’ immunity was revoked. Graciela Mochkofsky, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2023 Valieva was handed a light punishment by a Russian tribunal. Yuliya Talmazan, NBC News, 8 Feb. 2024 On March 29, 2022, Paulin Silva, an environmental lawyer, stood before the Primer Tribunal Ambiental de Antofagasta, a regional tribunal in northern Chile that specializes in resolving environmental issues within its jurisdiction. Julia Shipley, WIRED, 13 Jan. 2024 The tribunal, however, found Manning not guilty of the most serious charge of aiding the enemy, which carries a life sentence. Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 2 Jan. 2024 Congress voted at the end of November in the final ordinary session of the year to strip four election tribunal magistrates of their immunity, paving the way for charges against them. Sandra Cuffe, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tribunal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin, platform for magistrates, from tribunus tribune

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Time Traveler
The first known use of tribunal was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near tribunal

Cite this Entry

“Tribunal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tribunal. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

tribunal

noun
tri·​bu·​nal trī-ˈbyün-ᵊl How to pronounce tribunal (audio)
trib-ˈyün-
1
: the seat of a judge
2
: a court of justice
3
: something that decides or determines
the tribunal of public opinion

Legal Definition

tribunal

noun
tri·​bu·​nal trī-ˈbyün-ᵊl, tri- How to pronounce tribunal (audio)
1
: the seat of a judge or one acting as a judge
2
: a court or forum of justice : a person or body of persons having to hear and decide disputes so as to bind the parties
Etymology

Latin, platform for magistrates, from tribunus tribune, from tribus tribe

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