judging

[ juhj-ing ]

adjective

1. rendering an authoritative decision, as in a legal case, contest, dispute, or the like:

   He received the highest praise on his cooking contest entry from the judging chefs in their feedback.

2. hearing evidence or arguments in a case in order to render a decision:

   The appeal and second appeal will last approximately one year each, depending on the judging court and the evidence.

3. evaluating, assessing, or forming a critical opinion of someone or something:

   We think all rightly judging readers will reject such an unlikely interpretation.

4. making or expressing a negative assessment of someone or something; condemning:

   I’d refrain from using judging words like "slob" and "ungracious," as those will lead to defensiveness and hurt feelings.

5. making a careful guess or estimate:

   It’s hard to reckon one’s distance from something when the judging eye is under water and the target is in the air.

noun

1. the act of rendering an authoritative decision, forming an estimate or critical opinion, or making or expressing a negative assessment of someone or something:

   The highlight of the evening was the judging of the Best in Red competition.

   I’m tired of the constant judging and critiquing by others.

Other Words From

• judg·ing·ly adverb
• un·judg·ing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of judging¹

First recorded in 1325–75; judg(e) ( def ) + -ing ²( def ) for the adjective senses; judg(e) ( def ) + -ing ¹( def ) for the noun sense

Example Sentences

But it would be exceptionally brave, or foolhardy, judging on the statistics alone.

From BBC

Judging by Google's data, search enquiries that include the country’s name have shot up since the beginning of this week.

From BBC

Some ordinary Lebanese attempting to escape Israeli bombing reportedly fled to the Baalbek ruins, judging that ancient sites would not be targeted by Israel and would therefore offer protection.

From BBC

“Judging by the pre-election rhetoric … the Republican team is not going to send more and more American taxpayer money into the furnace of the proxy war against Russia,” he said.

From Salon

Judging from the torrent of polling divinations, spirited debate and reportage dedicated to the potential ballot choices of our sons, brothers, husbands and uncles, women’s voting trends must be stagnant or just simpler, right?

From Los Angeles Times