judge

1 of 2

noun

ˈjəj 

: one who makes judgments: such as

a

: a public official authorized to decide questions brought before a court

also : an officer in a government agency with the authority to hold hearings about and recommend resolutions for disputes concerning the agency's actions

b

: one appointed to decide in a contest or competition : umpire

c

: one who gives an authoritative opinion

d

: critic

e

often Judge : a tribal hero exercising leadership among the Hebrews after the death of Joshua

judgeship

ˈjəj-ˌship 

noun

judge

2 of 2

verb

judged; judging

transitive verb

1

: to form an opinion about through careful weighing of evidence and testing of premises

2

: to form an estimate or evaluation of

trying to judge the amount of time required

especially : to form a negative opinion about

shouldn't judge him because of his accent

3

: to hold as an opinion : guess, think

I judge she knew what she was doing

4

: to sit in judgment on : try

judge a case

5

: to determine or pronounce after inquiry and deliberation

They judged him guilty.

6

: govern, rule

—used of a Hebrew tribal leader

intransitive verb

1

: to form an opinion

2

: to decide as a judge

judger noun

Synonyms of judge

Noun

• referee
• umpire

Verb

• decide
• determine
• settle
• adjudicate
• adjudge

Choose the Right Synonym for judge

infer, deduce, conclude, judge, gather mean to arrive at a mental conclusion.

infer implies arriving at a conclusion by reasoning from evidence; if the evidence is slight, the term comes close to surmise.

from that remark, I inferred that they knew each other

deduce often adds to infer the special implication of drawing a particular inference from a generalization.

denied we could deduce anything important from human mortality

conclude implies arriving at a necessary inference at the end of a chain of reasoning.

concluded that only the accused could be guilty

judge stresses a weighing of the evidence on which a conclusion is based.

judge people by their actions

gather suggests an intuitive forming of a conclusion from implications.

gathered their desire to be alone without a word

Examples of judge in a Sentence

Noun

She's one of the strictest judges in the state.

He served as a judge at the baking contest.

“I don't think we should trust her.” “Let me be the judge of that.”

She is a good judge of character.

Verb

You should not judge people by their appearance.

He was trying to judge the strength of his opponent.

We should do whatever we judge to be the right thing.

Who are you to judge me?

He feels that they have judged him unfairly.

Don't judge her too severely.

The jury will be asked to judge the defendant's guilt.

If you are accused of a crime you have the right to be judged by a jury of your peers.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The fourth century’s Cassian of Imola—patron saint of shorthand writers and court reporters, and apparently a strict teacher—was so irritating that a judge condemned him to be tortured to death by his own students, who stabbed him with their styli and school supplies. —Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 23 Nov. 2025

The judge’s order is partially redacted, but Halligan appears to have misled the grand jurors about Comey’s constitutional right not to testify. —Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2025

Verb

But that’s not the metric by which his subjects will judge a reign that could stretch across half a century. —Mohammed Sergie, semafor.com, 24 Nov. 2025

One better-than-nothing criterion to judge a lounge is its bathrooms. —Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English juge, borrowed from Anglo-French (also continental Old French), going back to Latin jūdic-, jūdex "individual appointed to decide a case at law, member of a panel appointed to hear a case, judge, umpire, critic," going back to pre-Latin *i̯eu̯o(s)-dik-s (or a similar form) "one who points out the right," from *i̯eu̯os- (base of Latin jūr-, jūs "right, law") + *-dik-, agentive derivative from zero-grade of Indo-European *dei̯k- "show, point out" — more at just entry 1, diction

Note: The form juge is not the regular outcome of presumed Gallo-Romance *jūdice and must have undergone influence from the verb jug(i)er—see judge entry 2. – The expected Latin form would be *jūdix rather than jūdex; the terminal -ex is presumably by analogy with artifex (see artifice), haruspex (see haruspex) and similar words.

Verb

Middle English juggen, borrowed from Anglo-French juger (continental Old French jugier), going back to Latin jūdicāre, derivative of jūdex "individual appointed to decide a case at law, judge entry 1"

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Phrases Containing judge

• (as) sober as a judge
• as/so far as one can see/tell/judge
• back judge
• circuit judge
• field judge
• judge advocate
• judge advocate general
• line judge

Rhymes for judge

• budge
• drudge
• frage
• fudge
• grudge
• mudge
• nudge
• rudge
• sludge
• smudge
• trudge
• adjudge

Kids Definition

judge

1 of 2 verb

ˈjəj 

judged; judging

1

: to form an opinion after careful consideration

2

: to decide as a judge : try

3

: to reach a conclusion about something : think

judge

2 of 2 noun

1

: a public official having authority to decide questions brought before a court

2

: a person appointed to decide in a contest or competition : umpire

3

: a person who is qualified to give an opinion : critic

judgeship

-ˌship 

noun

Etymology

Verb

Middle English juggen "to judge," from early French juger (same meaning), from Latin judicare "to judge," from judic-, judex "judge," from jus "right, law," and dicere "to say" — related to hoosegow, jury, just, prejudice

Legal Definition

judge

1 of 2 verb

ˈjəj 

judged; judging

transitive verb

1

: to hear and decide (as a litigated question) in a court of justice

judge a case

2

: to pronounce after inquiry and deliberation

he was judged incompetent

intransitive verb

: to make a determination : decide

judge between two accounts

judge

2 of 2 noun

: a public official vested with the authority to hear, determine, and preside over legal matters brought in court

also : one (as a justice of the peace) who performs one or more functions of such an official

Etymology

Verb

Old French jugier, from Latin judicare, from judic-, judex judge, from jus right, law + dicere to decide, say