judiciary

noun

ju·​di·​cia·​ry jü-ˈdi-shē-ˌer-ē  -ˈdi-shə-rē 

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

Examples of judiciary in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

These include decisions by a hostile California judiciary which, especially in the last two decades, have sided with the government and its special interest benefactors by creating loopholes that significantly weakened taxpayer protections that had stood for over 40 years. —Jon Coupal, Oc Register, 26 Apr. 2026

The Mizan news agency of Iran’s judiciary announced Kiani was convicted of charges including attacks on security forces in the city of Asfahn in January. —ABC News, 25 Apr. 2026

Alongside the stand-alone bill, Letlow also secured passage of an amendment through the House Appropriations Committee requiring the federal judiciary to examine the issue. —Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 24 Apr. 2026

The purpose of the new rule is to allow the state’s judiciary to gather data on such arrests to better understand their impact and frequency, the agency said. —Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 24 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

probably noun derivative of judiciary, adjective, "judicial," going back to Middle English judiciari, borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French judiciaire, borrowed from Latin jūdiciārius "of the law courts," from jūdicium "legal proceedings, court" + -ārius -ary entry 2 — more at judicial

First Known Use

1623, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for judiciary

• accessary
• adversary
• ancillary
• arbitrary
• aviary
• axillary
• beriberi
• breviary
• budgetary
• capillary
• catenary
• cautionary

Kids Definition

judiciary

noun

ju·​di·​cia·​ry ju̇-ˈdish-ē-ˌer-ē  -ˈdish-ə-rē 

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

Legal Definition

judiciary

noun

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

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