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judge

judge

266 3.4
A person who decides winners at a contest or show
  • noun
  • /dʒʌdʒ/
translation icon : jurado
  • If nothing else, he was a very good judge of a woman's beauty and character.
  • a panel of judges
  • judges for competitions
  • scoring by judges

So all things considered, the best judge of this, it's you.

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Examples

  • Clearly, there is broad agreement among the judges on the relative abilities of the skaters.

    Academic text (1991)
  • And the four of us were the judges for a shijo contest.

  • So all things considered, the best judge of this, it's you.

  • I will be your judge.

  • And now it had fallen to him to be a judge for their sons...

    Fiction book (1996)
  • I'm a lousy judge of character.

  • Entry number 2, Mr. Judge, seems to be the front-runner for this race.

  • Clearly, the statistical evidence suggests that judges tend to favor competitors from their own countries.

    Academic text (1991)
  • There was a high level of agreement between two expert judges who grouped questionnaire items into themes.

    Academic text (2015)
  • In the art competition, the judge praised the creativity of the participants.

Synonyms

reviewer
vsjudge
118 3.1

A person who reads and checks the quality of a paper, proposal, or code

decides merits with authority rather than only checking suitability
examiner
vsjudge
83 3.4

A person who carefully looks at things to find information

uses expert opinion to decide merits and choose winners
umpire
vsjudge
54 2.7

A person who makes decisions in sports or disputes to make sure rules are followed

decides merits with expert authority especially in competitions
arbiter
vsjudge
28 6.7

A person who settles a disagreement and makes a final decision

decides merits with expert knowledge and authority especially in contests
referee
vsjudge
8 5.2

A person who reads and judges a paper before it is published

decides contest merits with formal authority rather than only reviewing work
evaluator
vsjudge
7 4.3

A person who judges how good or useful something is

focuses on authoritative decisions and deciding merits in competitions
rater
vsjudge
4 4.6

A person who gives scores to work like tests or essays

forms authoritative opinions and decides winners based on overall merit
adjudicator
vsjudge
  • Formal
3 7.7

A person who decides a disagreement between people or groups

is broader, used for authoritative opinions especially in competitions
trier
vsjudge
  • Formal
3 8.7

A person like a judge or jury who decides what happened in a legal case

decides merits in contests and evaluations rather than only legal cases
assessor
vsjudge
3 4.3

A person who judges how good or valuable something is

holds authority to form decisive opinions and determine contest merits
judger
vsjudge
1 7.0

A person who quickly forms opinions about people or situations

has formal expert authority to decide merits, not just form opinions
discerner
vsjudge
1 7.5

A person who can notice small differences and good quality in things

applies authority to decide merits rather than only perceiving differences
judicator
vsjudge
8.8

A person who listens and decides who is right in a dispute or competition

has the same meaning but is an alternative form

Antonyms

122 2.8

A person who does an activity like a sport or hobby for pleasure, not as a job

Idioms

Decide something about a person or thing by how they look

Make an excuse that nobody believes and only a judge cares about

Compounds

trial judge
  • Formal
13 5.1

A person who leads a court trial and decides about the law and evidence

activist judge
  • Literature
4 7.5

A judge who decides cases based on personal beliefs to promote social change

judge advocate
  • Specialized
4 7.4

An officer in the military who gives legal advice and handles law for soldiers

1 9.1

A senior military lawyer who gives legal advice to a branch of the armed forces

1 4.8

An official who helps the referee by watching the sideline and keeping the game time

back judge
  • Jargon
1 5.5

An official in American football who stands deep behind defenders to watch the play and enforce rules

1 7.9

An official in American football who watches plays and passes downfield on one sideline

A person who judges contests very strictly and unfairly, used as a joke

field judge
  • Jargon
5.5

An official in American football who watches passes and calls penalties near the far sideline

7.9

Rules judges make when they decide cases

How Authoritative

judge
266 3.4
assessor
3 4.3

Surface Forms

judge singular
judges plural

Etymology

Judge comes from the old Latin word iudex, built from ius 'law' and dicere 'to say'. A helpful way to remember a contest judge is that they 'say' who is best or give their official decision, just like the idea behind the word 'judgment'.