judge

1 of 2

noun

: one who makes judgments: such as
a
: a public official authorized to decide questions brought before a court
b
: one appointed to decide in a contest or competition : umpire
c
: one who gives an authoritative opinion
d
: critic
e
often capitalized : a tribal hero exercising leadership among the Hebrews after the death of Joshua
judgeship 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
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
Shevchenko used dominant wrestling and impeccable submission defense to win every round on all three judges' scorecards. Brian Mazique, Forbes, 15 Sep. 2024 But what finally derailed the case was the Nixon administration’s unseemly overtures to the judge. Christopher Goffard, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2024
Verb
Television had come calling too, with judging duties for America’s Next Top Model as well as Max’s Legendary, a reality show about ball culture. Diana Tsui, TIME, 23 Sep. 2024 But saying a high replacement rate of a very low income (which is what incomes are right before retirement typically) is surely a poor way to judge sufficiency. Teresa Ghilarducci, Forbes, 22 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for judge 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'judge.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English juge, from Anglo-French, from Latin judex — see judge entry 2

Verb

Middle English juggen, from Anglo-French juger, from Latin judicare, from judic-, judex judge, from jus right, law + dicere to decide, say — more at just, diction

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

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

Time Traveler
The first known use of judge was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near judge

Cite this Entry

“Judge.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/judge. Accessed 6 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

judge

1 of 2 verb
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 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
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

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