sober as a judge

1. Not at all intoxicated, quite clear-headed, as in Even after three drinks he was sober as a judge. Why judges should be equated with sobriety is not known, but the simile was first recorded in 1694.

Example Sentences

The same can be said about the ending of "Brockmire," which bunted America's favorite baseball announcer into a future where the world is burning to a crisp, baseball is dying – and he's sober as a judge and raising a college-aged daughter.

From Salon

Easy to chalk it up as the death of a loon, of an extreme personality, but with Salazar, that argument is impossible to make because he was as sober as a judge.

From Los Angeles Times

So much for thinking we need someone as sober as a judge.

From Salon

In this upside-down era, it was the accuser who was sober as a judge and the supreme court hopeful who was angry, indignant, tearful and deeply politicised, throwing out allegations of a vast leftwing conspiracy.

From The Guardian

Phrases like “stone-cold sober” and “sober as a judge” hammer home the stern, preachy reputation of sobriety.

From The Guardian