evidentiary

adjective

ev·​i·​den·​tia·​ry ˌe-və-ˈden-chə-rē How to pronounce evidentiary (audio)
-chē-ˌer-ē
1
: being, relating to, or affording evidence
photographs of evidentiary value
2
: conducted so that evidence may be presented
an evidentiary hearing

Examples of evidentiary in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
On top of that, if someone’s given an evidentiary hearing, the same attorneys who defended them could be called as witnesses to testify against the allegations made by their former client. Alex Brizee july 30, Idaho Statesman, 30 July 2026 The judge will sort that out at an evidentiary hearing in September before calculating the final interest award. Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 30 July 2026 Berglund Scherwitzl arose in a discipline where the evidentiary bar is five standard deviations. Geri Stengel, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026 In 2025, the Office of Police Accountability received 230 unique allegations of misconduct in complaints that met the evidentiary standards for an investigation. Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 24 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for evidentiary

Word History

First Known Use

1780, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of evidentiary was in 1780

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Evidentiary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/evidentiary. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.

Legal Definition

evidentiary

adjective
1
: being, relating to, or affording evidence
photographs of evidentiary value
2
: conducted so that evidence may be presented
an evidentiary hearing
evidentiarily adverb
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