supreme court

noun, often capitalized S&C

Updated on: 22 Apr 2018

Definition of supreme court

1 : the highest judicial tribunal in a political unit (such as a nation or state)

2 : a court of original jurisdiction in New York state subordinate to a final court of appeals

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Recent Examples of supreme court from the Web

Nepal’s Ministry of Tourism tried to prohibit double amputees this year, but the country’s supreme court overruled the ban.

— alan arnette, Outside Online, "The Everest Climbers to Watch This Season," 18 Apr. 2018
But on another front, a new resign-to-run law may mean problems in Scott’s plans to install three new state supreme court justices on his way out the door of the governor’s mansion, the Associated Press’s Gary Fineout reports.

— dan sweeney, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Power Lunch: Just a typical morning in the Trump White House," 13 Mar. 2018
Brazil’s supreme court said President Michel Temer’s bank accounts could be scrutinised in an investigation into possible corruption involving port permits.

— The Economist, "Politics this week," 8 Mar. 2018
While the president* was speaking in Cincinnati, the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal by Republicans in Pennsylvania of a ruling by that state’s supreme court that Pennsylvania’s electoral maps were rigged to favor Republicans.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "Where Do Republicans Go From Here?," 6 Feb. 2018
As the current supreme court justices begin to retire, Henderson is confident President Donald Trump's replacement will be more conservative.

— jonece starr dunigan, AL.com, "Yellowhammer Fund in Tuscaloosa providing financial assistance for abortions," 31 Jan. 2018
In North Carolina, these proposals follow the Republican legislature’s loss of the governorship and a conservative majority on the state supreme court in the 2016 election.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "Courts Getting in the Way? Time to Sink the Courts," 12 Feb. 2018
Look no further than the fact that Justice Don Willett of the Texas supreme court — who is eminently qualified for the federal bench by all objective measures — did not receive a single Democratic vote.

— josh blackman, National Review, "A Better Way to Give Trump More Judgeships to Fill," 18 Dec. 2017
In 2009, a special supreme court tribunal sentenced the former president to 25 years in prison for authorizing the operation of a death squad responsible for killing civilians.

— deborah bloom, CNN, "Uproar continues in Peru after ex-president is pardoned," 26 Dec. 2017

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

First Known Use of supreme court

1686

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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SUPREME COURT Defined for English Language Learners

supreme court

noun

Definition of supreme court for English Language Learners

: the highest court of law in a country or U.S. state

SUPREME COURT Defined for Kids

supreme court

noun, often capitalized

Definition of supreme court for Students

: the highest court of law in the United States or in many of its states

Law Dictionary

supreme court

noun su·preme court

legal Definition of supreme court

1 : the highest court in a nation or state; specifically, capitalized S&C : the highest court in the judicial branch of the U.S. government that has original jurisdiction over controversies involving ambassadors or other ministers or consuls but whose main activity is as the court of last resort exercising appellate jurisdiction over cases involving federal law

2 capitalized S&C : a court of original jurisdiction in New York

Note: The court of last resort in New York is the Court of Appeals.

Learn More about supreme court

Britannica English: Translation of supreme court for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about supreme court

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Definition of supreme court

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SUPREME COURT Defined for English Language Learners

supreme court

Definition of supreme court for English Language Learners

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supreme court

Definition of supreme court for Students

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supreme court

legal Definition of supreme court

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