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We won't complain about the origins of plaintiff, although complain and plaintiff are distantly related; both can be traced back to plangere, a Latin word meaning "to strike, beat one's breast, or lament." Plaintiff comes most immediately from Middle English plaintif, itself an Anglo-French borrowing tracing back to plaint, meaning "lamentation." (The English word plaintive is also related.) Logically enough, plaintiff applies to the one who does the complaining in a legal case.
Examples of plaintiff in a Sentence
Robert Tyson, Chicago Tribune, 27 May 2025
Listen to this article The city of Chula Vista has been ordered to release dozens of police drone videos, and to pay the plaintiff’s legal fees and other costs related to years of litigation over officials’ refusal to turn over even the most routine aerial images.
—Jeff McDonald, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 May 2025
But in the filing Thursday, lawyers for the plaintiffs said Uthmeier went beyond expressing his views about the temporary restraining order.
—Jim Saunders, Sun Sentinel, 23 May 2025
The delay in use of White Stadium for the new pro soccer team was cheered by the plaintiffs who oppose a pro soccer use of the facility, which the new NWSL team is set to share with Boston Public Schools student-athletes under a 10-year lease agreement with the City of Boston.
—Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald, 22 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for plaintiff
Cite this Entry
“Plaintiff.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plaintiff. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
plaintiff
noun
Legal Definition
plaintiff
noun
Middle French plaintif, from plaintif, adj., grieving, from plaint lamentation, from Latin planctus, from plangere to strike, beat one's breast, lament
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