arbiter

noun

ar·bi·ter | \ ˈär-bə-tər

Definition of arbiter

1 : a person with power to decide a dispute : judge The mayor will act as the final arbiter in any dispute between board members.

2 : a person or agency whose judgment or opinion is considered authoritative arbiters of taste

Synonyms Are arbiter and arbitration arbitrary? More Example Sentences Learn More about arbiter

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Are arbiter and arbitration arbitrary?

A large portion of the words we use today come from Latin roots. Many of these words retain a meaning that is closely related to their Latin ancestor, although sometimes they will drift a considerable distance from their roots (sinister, for instance, had the meaning of “on the left side” in Latin, but also meant “unlucky, inauspicious”). In some instances, a single Latin word will give rise to multiple words in English, some of which have strayed in meaning, and others which have not.

An example of this may be found in our word arbiter. We trace it to the Latin root with the same spelling, arbiter, meaning “eyewitness, onlooker, person appointed to settle a dispute.” A number of English words stem from the Latin arbiter, many of which have to do with judging or being a judge. An arbiter is a judge, and arbitration is the act of judging, or serving as an arbiter. Yet the most common meaning of arbitrary is “existing or coming about seemingly at random or by chance or as a capricious and unreasonable act of will,” which seems to be quite a bit different in meaning from the other two words. Arbitrary does indeed come from the same Latin root, and its oldest meaning in English was “depending on choice or discretion particularly regarding the decision of a judge or a tribunal.” But over time it developed additional senses that are somewhat removed from that initial meaning.

Examples of arbiter in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The trend’s emergence in Copenhagen, however, might have something to do with one of the city’s most revered arbiters of style, Social Zoo cofounder and creative director Pernille Teisbaek. — Brooke Bobb, Vogue, "Why Were Havaianas the It Shoes at Copenhagen Fashion Week?," 15 Aug. 2018 What results are corporate monopolies rather than competitive markets, where the government becomes a bigger arbiter of who wins and who loses. — Dambisa Moyo, Time, "The False Promises of Protectionism," 22 May 2018 Passport stamps, receipts and more information were provided to the arbiters. — Chris Chavez, SI.com, "Olympian Gil Roberts' 'Passionate Kissing' Defense Works To Avoid Drug Suspension," 25 Jan. 2018 An arbiter of truth gets to shape the reality that its users perceive. — Recode Staff, Recode, "Why the Craig behind Craigslist gave big bucks to a journalism program," 15 July 2018 But an arbiter later ruled that Walker had been wrongfully fired, the Victorville Daily Press reported in 2014. — Jared Gilmour, sacbee, "Cop in black man’s shooting death had been fired after racial slurs — then reinstated, police say | The Sacramento Bee," 1 May 2018 Source communities themselves are the best arbiters of what is or is not misappropriation. — Nadra Nittle, Vox, "The cultural appropriation debate has changed. But is it for the better?," 18 Dec. 2018 The label was an arbiter of cool, as were the other hallowed indies (many of which are no more, though Sub Pop endures). — Taylor Antrim, Vogue, "Taking to Rebecca Gates of The Spinanes, as Manos—a Lost '90s Indie-Rock Classic—Gets a Deluxe Reissue," 5 Dec. 2018 As far as the association is concerned, patients and their physicians -- those trained to work with the community -- are the best arbiters of what's medically necessary for that person. — Emanuella Grinberg, CNN, "What is medically necessary treatment for gender-affirming health care?," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'arbiter.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for arbiter

Middle English arbitour, arbitre, borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin arbiter "eyewitness, onlooker, person appointed to settle a dispute," perhaps, if going back to *ad-biteros, from ad- ad- + *-biteros, derivative from a base *-bit- akin to bītere, baetere, bētere "to go," of obscure origin