adjudicate

American  

[uh-joo-di-keyt] / əˈdʒu dɪˌkeɪt /

verb (used with object)

adjudicated, adjudicating

1. to pronounce or decree by judicial sentence.

2. to settle or determine (an issue or dispute) judicially.

3. to act as judge of (a contest).

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verb (used without object)

adjudicated, adjudicating

1. to sit in judgment (usually followed byupon ).

adjudicate British  

/ əˈdʒuːdɪkətɪv, əˈdʒuːdɪˌkeɪt /

verb

1. to give a decision (on), esp a formal or binding one

2. (intr) to act as an adjudicator

3. (tr) chess to determine the likely result of (a game) by counting relative value of pieces, positional strength, etc

4. (intr) to serve as a judge or arbiter, as in a competition

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Other Word Forms

• adjudication noun
• adjudicative adjective
• adjudicator noun
• adjudicatory adjective
• nonadjudicative adjective
• nonadjudicatively adverb
• readjudicate verb

Etymology

Origin of adjudicate

First recorded in 1690–1700; from Latin adjūdicātus (past participle of adjūdicāre ); ad-, judge, -ate ¹

Example Sentences

The days when dictators could live in gilded exile with fortunes in secret Swiss bank accounts are mostly over, primarily because of global mechanisms for adjudicating human-rights abuses and tracking ill-gotten gains.

From The Wall Street Journal

He claimed her firing was “for cause,” a term whose precise legal meaning hasn’t been adjudicated but is widely interpreted to connote gross malfeasance or some such offense in office.

From The Wall Street Journal

Meanwhile, the case was about to reach a United Nations agency that adjudicates copyright disputes.

From The Wall Street Journal

A White House official told the BBC that all individuals deported have had their asylum claims fully adjudicated before removal.

From BBC

But the countries have traded allegations of ceasefire breaches, and analysts say a comprehensive peace pact adjudicating the territorial dispute at the core of the conflict remains elusive.

From Barron's

Related Words

• arbitrate