sit in judgment
idiom
: to say whether or not someone or something is morally good, proper, etc.
He has no right to sit in judgment on/of/over me.
Examples of sit in judgment in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
One is to have the rest of the court sit in judgment of a ninth who is accused of some transgressions, but the justices are likely to reject such a role for collegiality reasons given the guarantee of lifetime tenure and the size of the court.
—
Charlie Savage, New York Times, 5 May 2023
McMaster also called on lawmakers to revamp their process for screening and approving candidates, who now need little more than the support of local politicians to sit in judgment on hundreds of thousands of criminal and civil cases each year.
—Joseph Cranney, ProPublica, 15 Jan. 2021
Some conservatives were pointing to the lack of precedent, and the Constitution’s silence on the matter, to argue that the Senate had no right to sit in judgment of Mr. Trump after Wednesday.
—New York Times, 15 Jan. 2021
Ultimately, the Florida Senate has the exclusive responsibility to sit in judgment of the merits of a governor's suspension, under the state constitution.
—Zac Anderson, USA TODAY, 5 Aug. 2022
Many advertisers would still like an independent arbiter to sit in judgment of who’s watching their commercials.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 5 Apr. 2022
That’s because there’s a person or persons who sit in judgment and are in a position to penalize the guilty party.
—Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 4 Apr. 2022
The problem has another source: the Swedish high priests who sit in judgment on the world’s literature.
—Tunku Varadarajan, WSJ, 10 Oct. 2021
Magistrates sit in judgment on cases involving petty thefts, drunken driving, domestic violence, assaults and disorderly conduct.
—Joseph Cranney, ProPublica, 13 July 2021
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Charlie Savage, New York Times, 5 May 2023
McMaster also called on lawmakers to revamp their process for screening and approving candidates, who now need little more than the support of local politicians to sit in judgment on hundreds of thousands of criminal and civil cases each year.
—Joseph Cranney, ProPublica, 15 Jan. 2021
Some conservatives were pointing to the lack of precedent, and the Constitution’s silence on the matter, to argue that the Senate had no right to sit in judgment of Mr. Trump after Wednesday.
—New York Times, 15 Jan. 2021
Ultimately, the Florida Senate has the exclusive responsibility to sit in judgment of the merits of a governor's suspension, under the state constitution.
—Zac Anderson, USA TODAY, 5 Aug. 2022
Many advertisers would still like an independent arbiter to sit in judgment of who’s watching their commercials.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 5 Apr. 2022
That’s because there’s a person or persons who sit in judgment and are in a position to penalize the guilty party.
—Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 4 Apr. 2022
The problem has another source: the Swedish high priests who sit in judgment on the world’s literature.
—Tunku Varadarajan, WSJ, 10 Oct. 2021
Magistrates sit in judgment on cases involving petty thefts, drunken driving, domestic violence, assaults and disorderly conduct.
—Joseph Cranney, ProPublica, 13 July 2021
Cite this Entry
“Sit in judgment.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sit%20in%20judgment. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share