Plaintiff
/ˈpleɪn.tɪf/noun
A person who brings a lawsuit against another in a court of law.
Did you know?Plaintiff entered English through Anglo-French legal language, ultimately from the same Latin root as *plaint* and *complain*, words tied to public lament and grievance.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
L.
plangere
“to beat, strike the chest in grief; to lament”
Old French
OF
plaintif
“complaining, lamenting; plaintive”
Anglo-French
AF
plaintif
“one who makes a complaint in court”
14th Century
English
plaintif
“a person who complains in a lawsuit”
Modern English
English
plaintiff
“the party who initiates a civil legal action”