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judg·ment also judge·ment (jŭjmənt)
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n.
1.
a. The act or process of judging; the formation of an opinion after consideration or deliberation.
b. An opinion or estimate formed after consideration or deliberation, especially a formal or authoritative decision: awaited the judgment of the umpire.
2.
a. The mental ability to perceive and distinguish relationships; discernment: Fatigue may affect a pilot's judgment of distances.
b. The capacity to form an opinion by distinguishing and evaluating: His judgment of fine music is impeccable.
c. The capacity to assess situations or circumstances and draw sound conclusions; good sense: She showed good judgment in saving her money. See Synonyms at reason.
3. Law
a. A determination of a court of law; a judicial decision.
b. A court decision establishing that an obligation is owed, such as a debt.
4. A misfortune believed to be sent by God as punishment for sin.
5. Judgment The Last Judgment.
[Middle English jugement, from Old French, from jugier, to judge, from Latin iūdicāre; see JUDGE.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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