impaired judgment

Meaning

1. 1noununcountableformal

   A reduced ability to think clearly and make sensible decisions, often caused by alcohol, drugs, illness or exhaustion.

   Grammar: Used without a: alcohol can cause impaired judgment.

   Patterns

   • impaired judgment from something

   Lack of sleep led to impaired judgment during the long shift.

   Alcohol can cause impaired judgment well before a person feels drunk.

   The doctor warned that the medication might lead to impaired judgment.

Common combinations

cause impaired judgment

Some cold medicines can cause impaired judgment.

show signs of impaired judgment

The driver showed signs of impaired judgment at the roadside.

because of impaired judgment

Because of impaired judgment, he made a reckless decision.

impaired judgment due to fatigue

Pilots are trained to spot impaired judgment due to fatigue.

suffer from impaired judgment

Patients with the condition may suffer from impaired judgment.

Synonyms and how they differ

poor judgment

Poor judgment describes a bad decision, while impaired judgment says the ability itself was reduced by something.

clouded judgment

Clouded judgment is more figurative and often points to emotion rather than a physical cause.

diminished capacity

Diminished capacity is a legal phrase about responsibility, narrower than impaired judgment.

Opposites

Word family

impair verb

to weaken or damage

impairment noun

a loss of normal ability

impaired adjective

weakened or damaged

judge verb

to form an opinion or decide

Commonly confused: impaired judgment or impaired driving?

Practice

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Write a sentence using “impaired judgment”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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