Meaning & use
juries
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“juries” is a form of “jury”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounplural
Groups of people chosen to listen to evidence in a court case and decide if someone is guilty.
Grammar: This is the plural form; the singular is 'jury'. In British English, 'jury' can take a plural verb when you think of the members individually.
Patterns
- juries decide
- juries hear evidence
- serve on juries
Juries in criminal trials must reach an unanimous verdict.
The role of juries is to decide whether the defendant is guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
In some countries, juries are used only for serious crimes.
nounplural
Groups of people chosen to judge a competition or choose winners.
Grammar: Also used for panels in competitions, e.g. film festivals.
Patterns
- juries award prizes
- juries select winners
The juries at the film festival praised the director's work.
Different juries chose the winners in each category.
Word forms
| singular | jury |
|---|
Common combinations
- grand juries
- Grand juries decide whether there is enough evidence to charge someone.
- jury trial
- He asked for a jury trial.
- jury service
- She was called for jury service last month.
- jury duty
- He couldn't come to work because he had jury duty.
Synonyms and how they differ
- panels
- Used for groups that judge competitions or discuss topics, but not for legal trials.
- committees
- Groups chosen to make decisions or plans, not to decide guilt in a trial.
Word family
- juror noun
- A member of a jury.
- jury noun
- The singular form.
Commonly confused: juries or injury? juries or juror?
juries vs injury
Injury means physical harm; juries are groups of people in court.
juries vs juror
A juror is one person; juries are the whole group.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'juries' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Juries' is plural, so it takes a plural verb: 'Juries are...'. Option An is wrong because 'juries' is plural and 'is' is singular. Option C is wrong because you are sent to prison, not to juries. Option D is wrong because a single member is a 'juror', not 'juries member'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “juries”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.