arbitration

[ahr-bi-trey-shuh n]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR arbitration ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the hearing and determining of a dispute or the settling of differences between parties by a person or persons chosen or agreed to by them: Rather than risk a long strike, the union and management agreed to arbitration.

International Law. the application of judicial methods to the settlement of international disputes.

Origin of arbitration

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin arbitrātiōn- (stem of arbitrātiō), equivalent to arbitrāt(us) (see arbitrate) + -iōn- -ion

Related formsar·bi·tra·tion·al, adjectivear·bi·tra·tion·ist, nounpro·ar·bi·tra·tion, adjectivepro·ar·bi·tra·tion·ist, noun, adjectivere·ar·bi·tra·tion, noun

Can be confusedarbitration mediation (see synonym study at mediation)

Synonyms for arbitration

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR arbitration ON THESAURUS.COM

1. See mediation.

Arbitration, The

noun

a comedy (c300 b.c.) by Menander, extant only as a fragment.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for arbitration

mediation, compromise, adjudication, determination, decision, adjustment, judgment, agreement

Examples from the Web for arbitration

Contemporary Examples of arbitration

After two years, the dispute ended with an arbitration ruling in favor of Savage.
The Godfather of Right-Wing Radio
Caitlin Dickson
November 23, 2014
The suit was tossed out of a Brooklyn courthouse because it was already ordered to arbitration by a California court.
His Reputation Precedes Him: Dov Charney’s Blacklist
Justin Jones
June 19, 2014
The case is being heard at the Permanent Court of Arbitration, also located in The Hague.
Serbia and Croatia’s Competing Genocide Claims
Adam LeBor
March 11, 2014
But when they came together in what worked like an arbitration process, they found common ground.
CEO Solutions to the Shutdown
William L. McComb
October 14, 2013
The show really jumps back and forth through time this season, flashing back to the arbitration scenes with Marcia Gay Harden.
Jeff Daniels on the Most Explosive Episode of ‘The Newsroom’ Yet
Marlow Stern
August 26, 2013

Historical Examples of arbitration

The Greek Government had put no impediment in the way of arbitration.
The Grand Old Man
Richard B. Cook
With such men there could be no arbitration, and in fact there was no need.
The Harbor
Ernest Poole
These decisions are given by, what may be called, a court of arbitration and a court of appeal.
Bremen Cotton Exchange
Andreas Wilhelm Cramer
It is therefore basically not a plan of arbitration, nor is it an industrial court.
Herbert Hoover
Vernon Kellogg
It is not founded on the principle of arbitration or compulsion.
Herbert Hoover
Vernon Kellogg

British Dictionary definitions for arbitration

arbitration

noun

law the hearing and determination of a dispute, esp an industrial dispute, by an impartial referee selected or agreed upon by the parties concerned

international law the procedure laid down for the settlement of international disputes

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for arbitration

late 14c., "absolute decision," from Old French arbitracion, from Latin arbitrationem (nominative arbitratio) "judgment, will," noun of action from past participle stem of arbitrari "to be of an opinion, give a decision," from arbiter (see arbiter). Meaning "settlement of a dispute by a third party" is from 1630s.

arbitration in Culture

arbitration

The settling of disputes (especially labor disputes) between two parties by an impartial third party, whose decision the contending parties agree to accept. Arbitration is often used to resolve conflict diplomatically to prevent a more serious confrontation.