The most serious or substantial part of a complaint, charge, or accusation; the main point at issue.
From Latin gravamen, meaning 'something weighing heavily,' derived from gravis meaning 'heavy,' 'serious,' or 'weighty.' Used in English law since the 16th century.
Medieval lawyers loved Latin words, and gravamen perfectly captures the idea that legal disputes have a 'heavy' core issue—the word literally means the weightiest part of the argument.
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