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snap judgment

Idioms

A hurried or impetuous decision or finding, as in George was known for making snap judgments on personnel questions; he rarely bothered to investigate further. This expression, which uses snap in the sense of “quick,” was first recorded in 1841.

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.

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snap judgment

Thomas allowed agents to make this snap judgment themselves, at the border, without “clear and convincing evidence” that the LPR really did commit the offense.

From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026

She can peg a person’s height at a glance and sum up their prospects in a pitiless snap judgment.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2025

His snap judgment endangers a planet's civilian population, leaving her to fix the crisis he has created.

From Salon ● Apr. 10, 2024

Defense attorney Craig Harbaugh asserted the FBI was desperate to find the person responsible and made a snap judgment, focusing on Beal and ignoring other evidence and suspects.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 17, 2022

It’s the distillation of dating to a simple snap judgment.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023