What does impanel mean?
Impanel is a formal verb meaning to appoint or select people as members of a panel, especially a jury. It is most often used in legal and institutional contexts: a judge may impanel a jury, while a university may impanel an external review committee. The word suggests formal selection and installation, not a casual invitation, and it may imply that the selected people are to perform an official or deliberative role. In North American usage, impanel is common, whereas British English generally prefers empanel. The two spellings have the same core meaning, though usage varies by region and legal tradition. Impanel is especially useful when precision matters because it names the act of formally constituting a body rather than merely describing its existence. It also distinguishes selecting and summoning prospective members from the broader process of choosing or inviting candidates. As a specialist legal and institutional term, impanel conveys both membership and the formal procedure by which that membership begins.
verbTo formally appoint or select someone as a member of a panel, especially a jury.
- To formally appoint or select someone as a member of a panel, especially a jury.
"The judge ordered the clerk to impanel a new jury after a mistrial."
"The court impaneled twelve jurors to hear the case."
"The university impaneled a committee to review its admissions policy."
The im- in impanel is not a negating prefix: it comes from en- meaning “into,” marking someone’s placement into a panel.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does impanel come from?
Impanel was established in English by the early 17th century. It combines an assimilated form of the prefix en- (“in, into”) with panel, expressing the act of placing someone into a panel. Panel came through Anglo-French from Latin panellum, a diminutive of pannus, meaning “cloth” or “piece of cloth”; related forms include pane and pannus.
Related word forms
How impanel is actually used
Formal and especially associated with legal and institutional procedures. It is normally transitive and may carry procedural overtones, suggesting selection or appointment as part of formally constituting a jury or other deliberative body.
Easily confused with impanel
Empanel is an alternative spelling of the same verb and is especially preferred in British English.