prejudge

American  

[pree-juhj] / priˈdʒʌdʒ /

verb (used with object)

prejudged, prejudging

1. to judge beforehand.

2. to pass judgment on prematurely or without sufficient reflection or investigation.

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prejudge British  

/ priːˈdʒʌdʒ /

verb

1. (tr) to judge beforehand, esp without sufficient evidence

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Other Word Forms

• prejudger
  noun
• prejudgment
  noun

Etymology

Origin of prejudge

1555–65; < French préjuger < Latin praejūdicāre. See pre-, judge

Explanation

To prejudge is to make a decision about something before you have all the facts. If you prejudge a game, you decide who’s going to win before it starts. Better hold off on the victory party until it’s over. When you judge someone or something, you "form an opinion or a conclusion" about it. Adding the "before" prefix pre- to that means you come to this conclusion before you should. If an actual judge in a court of law were to prejudge her cases, she'd make her decisions before hearing any evidence at all. When you prejudge, you count your chickens before they hatch.

Example Sentences

At the confirmation hearing last month, Warsh said he wouldn’t prejudge policy decisions.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026

"We don't want to prejudge them, and we had a good conversation with our counterparts about that process."

From Barron's • Mar. 16, 2026

“It makes no sense whatsoever to prejudge the election outcome. And that is a misinformed view of what is happening on the ground in North Carolina, bless his heart,” McHenry said.

From Salon • Oct. 25, 2024

He told the BBC's Today programme that keeping the yards together was "sensible from an operating perspective" but he can’t prejudge what bidders will want.

From BBC • Sep. 17, 2024

“You cannot prejudge people in this business,” he said over and over when we met, and each time he used that phrase, his face took on a look of utter conviction.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell