Impanelling

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The act of enclosing or confining something within panels or frameworks
2. The process of creating a panel or series of panels, often to form a decorative or structural feature
3. Referring to the arrangement of items or people in an organized manner, typically within a defined area or structure

Etymology: "Impanelling" is the present participle of "impanel," which comes from Anglo-Norman "empaneller," a verb built on "panel" in its old sense of a list or schedule of people summoned for jury service. The "panel" in question traces to Old French "panel," a small piece of cloth or a strip of parchment, which is where the modern sense of a section of a surface or a group of selected people ultimately comes from. The original image is of a sheet of parchment on which names were written. The prefix "em-" (later "im-" in English spelling) means "into" or "in," so to impanel is to enter people onto that list. The verb is a legal term, and its use in English follows the courts' practice of drawing up a list of qualified jurors from which a jury is then chosen.

Synonyms: selecting, choosing, empaneling, appointing, forming

Antonyms: discharging, removing, dismissing, rejecting, excluding