jud-, judic-

1. To declare or to pronounce formally; to decree a decision: Because Greg won the race he was adjudged to be the best of his class in sports and was presented a trophy!
2. To determine or to decide by a judicial or legal procedure: Sam was convicted in court and adjudged guilty.

1. In law, to hear, to settle, and to decide a legal case or to reach a judicial conclusion about something: After hearing both sides of the divorce case involving the children, the judge adjudicated the matter and gave the mother full custody of her offspring.
2. To make an official judgement about a problem or a dispute in a law case: The two families were constantly arguing about the fence along their property lines causing them to go to court. The judge adjudicated the conflict and ordered the fence to be taken down.
3. Etymology: from Latin ad-, "to" + judicare, "to judge".

1. Reaching a final decision in a legal proceeding: After months and months of citing material by the lawyers in the case of Smith vs Smith, the lawsuit went to court and the judge presented the adjudication which ended all the disputes.
2. The act of pronouncing a judgment based on the evidence presented: Having blood tests completed and the evidence of the DNA presented to the court, the adjudication was pronounced by the judge, stating which man was the father of the child.

1. Someone who studies and settles conflicts and disputes: An adjudicator, or umpire, was needed in the racing competition in order to make sure that all of the rules were abided by and that no team could have an advantage over the others.
2. A person who presides, judges, and arbitrates during a formal dispute: The term adjudicator essentially means a judge, without invoking that legal term.

Because the two girls were thought to have stolen cigarettes and cosmetics in the store, which they denied, an adjudicator had to deal with this offense and determine the truth.

1. Translation: "An argument appealing to judgment."
2. Etymology: from Classical Latin argumentum, "argument"; and ad judicium, "to entreat the common judgement of mankind".

A high-ranking court officer, or a public official, who presides over a U.S. Federal or State court.

Beyond the normal course of legal proceedings: The extrajudicial decision by the judge was considered to be legally unwarranted by Ted's defending lawyer.

Descriptive of how something is done without being legally warranted or upheld by the law: In an out-of-court interview, the witness stated extrajudicially that he wasn’t completely sure of the identity of the culprit.

Lacking, or showing a lack of proper consideration or discretion; unwise; imprudent; indiscreet: In was an injudicious decision of the hikers to attempt to cross the frozen lake because of the unforeseen spots of thin ice over parts of the water.

Conveying a lack of common sense: Hans injudiciously made an inappropriate comment about his employer during the coffee break at work.

1. A high-ranking court officer, or a public official who hears and decides cases brought before a court of law: The judge decided to give the accused man a suspended sentence and allowed him to go.
2. Someone who supervises court trials, instructs juries, and pronounces judicial sentences: Frederik has been a well-known judge in the community for over twenty years.
3. A person, sometimes one of several, appointed to assess entries or performances in a competition and decide who wins: Sam was one of the judges for the artistic exhibition contest.
4. Someone who forms an opinion about some action or criticizes the behavior of another person or people: The teacher decided that he couldn't judge Lorna's school work adequately because she has been absent too often.
5. Etymology: "to form an opinion about", from Anglo-French juger, from Old French jugier "to judge", from Latin judicare "to judge", from judicem "to judge", a compound of jus "right, law" + root of dicere "to say".

1. To form an opinion about something after considering all the details or facts: Judge Clifford was given the responsibility of judging this special case.
2. To decide who or what is the winner of a competition: Amy was authorized to judge who was the champion of the contest.
3. To assess the quality of something or to estimate probabilities: Each suggestion must be judged on its own merits.
4. To form an opinion about someone or something; especially, after thinking whether it has met certain standards: The group judged Trudy's cake to be the best in the baking competition.