judiciary

noun ju·di·cia·ry \ jü-ˈdi-shē-ˌer-ē , -ˈdi-shə-rē \

|Updated on: 10 Jul 2018

Definition of judiciary

1 a : a system of courts of law

b : the judges of these courts

2 : a branch of government in which judicial power is vested

—

judiciary

adjective

See judiciary defined for English-language learners

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Recent Examples of judiciary from the Web

That growing divide is evident in the judiciary committee vote as well, before the nomination goes to a vote in the full Senate.

— randy yeip, WSJ, "How Long Before the Senate Acts on Supreme Court Nominees?," 29 June 2018
Wray and Rosenstein, who appointed special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, testified Thursday for hours to the House's judiciary committee.

— amber phillips, Washington Post, "How Rosenstein and Wray’s testimony undermined GOP efforts to undermine the Russia investigation," 28 June 2018
If a president pardoned himself, the judiciary committee would probably be bound to hold an impeachment inquiry on that and decide what to do based on the testimony that was presented at the inquiry.

— craig gilbert, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Sensenbrenner agrees Trump could pardon himself, but says it would lead to impeachment," 4 June 2018
Mr Trump is constrained by Congress, an independent judiciary, a free press and a bureaucracy with a long tradition of following the law.

— The Economist, "AMLO, Mexico’s answer to Donald Trump," 23 June 2018
According to the New York Times, immigration courts are housed under the Justice Department, not the federal judiciary, and so Sessions has the authority to overturn their decisions.

— angela helm, The Root, "Jeff Sessions Makes Another Racist, Sexist Policy Change at Justice Department. Is Anyone Surprised?," 12 June 2018
Persky and his supporters said the recall was a threat to an independent judiciary that is supposed to base its decisions on the law and not on public opinion.

— bob egelko, SFChronicle.com, "Judge Persky losing in bid to avoid recall," 5 June 2018
In an era of conservative federal courts, civil-rights advocates sometimes argue that the judiciary is a weak vehicle for change, and that all real progress must pass through the court of public opinion.

— will stancil, The Atlantic, "The Radical Supreme Court Decision That America Forgot," 29 May 2018
Kovesi’s crusade, a solo effort in a part of the world where independent judiciaries have been compromised, so far led to the seizure of at least 2 billion euros ($2.4 billion) of assets.

— andrea dudik, Bloomberg.com, "A Showdown Looms in Europe’s Most Corrupt Region," 7 May 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of judiciary

judiciary, adjective, from Latin judiciarius judicial, from judicium

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1623

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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Law Dictionary

judiciary

noun ju·di·cia·ry \ ju̇-ˈdi-shē-ˌer-ē, -ˈdi-shə-rē \

legal Definition of judiciary

plural judiciaries

1 a : a system of courts of law

b : the judges of these courts

2 : a branch of government in which judicial power is vested — compare executive, legislature

—

judiciary

adjective

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See words that rhyme with judiciary Spanish Central: Translation of judiciary Nglish: Translation of judiciary for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of judiciary for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about judiciary

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judiciary

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judiciary

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judiciary

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judiciary

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