Idiom: the jury is (still) out
Meaning
Idiom: the jury is (still) out
- a decision or opinion hasn’t been made (because not enough information is available)
Note: This idiom refers to a "jury" (a group of people at a legal trial), which goes out of the courtroom and into another room to deliberate and decide whether someone is guilty or innocent of crimes.
While the jury is out of the courtroom, we don't know what they are thinking or discussing or what decision they will make. Once they reach a decision, they come back into the courtroom to give the judge their verdict.
Example sentences
— A: “Are you going to Europe this summer?” B: “The jury still out but I’ll find out if my holiday request is approved very soon.”
— The jury's out about the new receptionist—she's doing okay at the job but she's also been late several times this week.
— The jury is still out about whether charter schools are better than public schools.
— We hope the program will be successful but the jury is still out.
— Sales have been pretty good for the new cupcake flavors but the jury is out until we get more feedback.
— We've invested a lot of money and time in this new product so we're anxious to know if it will be successful but the jury's still out.
— I wish I could tell you if we're going to merge with another company but at the moment, the jury is still out.
— The jury's still out as to how life evolved from nonliving matter.
— The jury is out on how to handle climate change.
— Actually, the jury's still out on the benefits of gluten free diets.
— The police think it may be a murder but the jury's still out on the cause of death.
Synonyms
- open to question
- up for discussion
- on the fence
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