Etymologically
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judgment

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 12:39. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈd͡ʒʌd͡ʒ.mənt/; /ˈd͡ʒʌd͡ʒ.mɪnt/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English jugement, borrowed from Old French jugement (“legal judgment; diagnosis; the Last Judgment”),[2][3][4] from jugier (“to judge”) (see judge) and -ment.[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Trial at law, and the capacity to make decisions: the mid-13th century in Etymonline;[2] the OED's first sense, the trial of a case in court, is from 1297.[5]

Semantic evolution

A sentence imposed by a court is from the late 13th century,[2] about 1290 in the OED,[5] and any authoritative decision or verdict from the early 14th century.[2] An opinion is from about 1300.[2] The final trial of humankind by God, the Last Judgment, is from the late 14th century, as is Judgment Day;[2] the OED has the divine judgment from 1340.[5] Discernment, the ability to judge well, is first recorded in the 1530s,[2] and a misfortune seen as a sign of divine displeasure by the 1610s.[2] To sit in judgment on others, to criticize them with an air of superiority, is from about 1440.[5]

Timeline

  • mid-13th century – trial; capacity for deciding.[2]
  • c. 1290 – a court's sentence.[5]
  • c. 1300 – an opinion.[2]
  • 1340 – the Last Judgment.[5]
  • 1530s – discernment.[2]
  • 1610s – a divine punishment.[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The ability to make sensible decisions; discernment or good sense.
  2. An opinion formed after consideration.
  3. (law) The decision of a court, or a debt or obligation arising from it.
  4. A misfortune regarded as a punishment from God.
  5. Judgment: the Last Judgment.

Word family

  • self-judgment
  • judgmental
  • day of judgment
  • declaratory judgment
  • private judgment
  • summary judgment
  • value judgment
  • judgment call

Usage notes

Both judgment and judgement are common,[6] and judgement is more usual in British English, but British legal use keeps judgment.[6][7]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  7. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press