judge
Americannoun
-
a public officer authorized to hear and decide cases in a court of law; a magistrate charged with the administration of justice.
- Synonyms:
- justice
-
a person appointed to decide in any competition, contest, or matter at issue; authorized arbiter.
the judges of a beauty contest.
- Synonyms:
- arbitrator
-
a person qualified to pass a critical judgment.
a good judge of horses.
- Synonyms:
- critic, connoisseur
-
an administrative head of Israel in the period between the death of Joshua and the accession to the throne by Saul.
-
(especially in rural areas) a county official with supervisory duties, often employed part-time or on an honorary basis.
verb (used with object)
-
to pass legal judgment on; pass sentence on (a person).
The court judged him guilty.
-
to hear evidence or legal arguments in (a case) in order to pass judgment; adjudicate; try.
The Supreme Court is judging that case.
-
to form a judgment or opinion of; decide upon critically.
You can't judge a book by its cover.
-
to decide or settle authoritatively; adjudge.
The censor judged the book obscene and forbade its sale.
-
to infer, think, or hold as an opinion; conclude about or assess.
He judged her to be correct.
-
to make a careful guess about; estimate.
We judged the distance to be about four miles.
-
(of the ancient Hebrew judges) to govern.
verb (used without object)
-
to act as a judge; pass judgment.
No one would judge between us.
- Synonyms:
- adjudicate, adjudge
-
to form an opinion or estimate.
I have heard the evidence and will judge accordingly.
-
to make a mental judgment.
noun
-
a public official with authority to hear cases in a court of law and pronounce judgment upon them Compare magistrate justice justice
-
a person who is appointed to determine the result of contests or competitions
-
a person qualified to comment critically
a good judge of antiques
-
a leader of the peoples of Israel from Joshua's death to the accession of Saul
verb
-
to hear and decide upon (a case at law)
-
(tr) to pass judgment on; sentence
-
(when tr, may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to decide or deem (something) after inquiry or deliberation
-
to determine the result of (a contest or competition)
-
to appraise (something) critically
-
(tr; takes a clause as object) to believe (something) to be the case; suspect
Related Words
Judge, referee, umpire refer to one who is entrusted with decisions affecting others. Judge, in its legal and other uses, implies particularly that one has qualifications and authority for giving decisions in matters at issue: a judge appointed to the Supreme Court; a judge in the pie competition. A referee usually examines and reports on the merits of a case as an aid to a court. An umpire gives the final ruling when arbitrators of a case disagree.
Other Word Forms
- judgeable adjective
- judgeless adjective
- judgelike adjective
- judger noun
- judgeship noun
- judgingly adverb
- rejudge verb
- subjudge noun
- subjudgeship noun
- underjudge verb (used with object)
- unjudgeable adjective
- unjudged adjective
- unjudgelike adjective
- well-judged adjective
Etymology
Origin of judge
First recorded in 1175–1225; (verb) Middle English jugen, from Anglo-French juger, Old French jugier, from Latin jūdicāre “to judge,” equivalent to jūdic- (stem of jūdex ) “a judge” + -āre infinitive suffix; (noun) Middle English juge, from Old French, from Latin jūdicem, accusative of jūdex
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It overruled the judge’s order invalidating UCLA’s lease of a portion of the VA grounds for its baseball stadium.
From Los Angeles Times
The judge ruled that changing it was in bad faith.
From BBC
Premiums may decline slightly in 2026, judging from the filings that major insurers sent to state regulators, said Jeff Batiste, senior vice president and general manager for U.S. auto and home insurance at LexisNexis.
From MarketWatch
Outcomes are judged not only by use value, but by theater—surprise, symbolism, presentation.
A district court judge ruled it unlawful, but an appeals court panel allowed the Los Angeles deployment to proceed.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
