Meaning & use
judging a person
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Meanings
phraseidiom
Forming an opinion or assessment about someone's character, appearance, or behavior, often without knowing all the facts.
Grammar: Used as a noun phrase or gerund: 'Judging a person by their clothes is unfair.'
Patterns
- judging a person by something
- judging a person for something
- judging a person on something
Judging a person by their accent can lead to wrong ideas.
She is careful about judging a person before she meets them.
Judging a person on one mistake is not fair.
phraseidiom
The act of deciding whether someone is good, bad, guilty, or worthy, especially in a moral or legal sense.
Grammar: Often used in legal or moral contexts: 'Judging a person guilty requires evidence.'
Patterns
- judging a person guilty
- judging a person fairly
- judging a person's actions
The court is responsible for judging a person accused of a crime.
Judging a person's actions is easier than understanding their reasons.
We should avoid judging a person without hearing their side.
Common combinations
- judging a person by appearance
- Judging a person by appearance is a common mistake.
- judging a person unfairly
- He was accused of judging a person unfairly.
- judging a person's character
- Judging a person's character takes time.
- judging a person on first impressions
- We often end up judging a person on first impressions.
Synonyms and how they differ
- evaluating someone
- More neutral and formal; it suggests a careful assessment rather than a quick opinion.
- sizing someone up
- Informal; it means forming a quick opinion about someone's abilities or intentions.
Opposites
Word family
- judge verb
- To form an opinion or decision about someone or something.
- judgment noun
- The ability to make considered decisions or the opinion formed.
- judgmental adjective
- Too quick to criticize or form negative opinions about others.
Commonly confused: judging a person or prejudice?
judging a person vs prejudice
Prejudice is a pre-formed negative opinion, often based on group membership; judging a person can be fair or unfair, but prejudice is always unfair.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase 'judging a person' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The phrase means forming an opinion about someone. Option 0 uses it correctly with 'by their cover'. The other options make no sense with this meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “judging a person”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.