Russian Translation(s) & Details for 'judge'

English Word: judge

Key Russian Translations:

• судья [ˈsudʲə] - [Formal, Noun]
• судить [ˈsudʲitʲ] - [Formal, Verb]

Frequency: Medium (Common in legal, judicial, and evaluative contexts in Russian media and everyday conversation)

Difficulty: B1 (Intermediate; requires understanding of basic noun and verb conjugations, but accessible to learners with intermediate grammar knowledge)

Pronunciation (Russian):

судья: [ˈsudʲə]

судить: [ˈsudʲitʲ]

Note on судья: The stress is on the first syllable, and the 'dʲ' represents a palatalized 'd', which can be challenging for English speakers—try pronouncing it like "soo-DYA" with a soft 'd' sound.

Note on судить: This is a verb with stress on the first syllable; the infinitive ending '-ить' softens to '-itʲ', common in Russian verbs.

Audio: []

Meanings and Usage:

Noun: A public official who presides over court proceedings

Translation(s) & Context:

• судья - Used in formal legal settings, such as courts or trials; implies authority and impartiality.

Usage Examples:

• Судья вынес вердикт по делу.

  The judge delivered the verdict in the case.

• В суде председательствует опытный судья.

  An experienced judge presides over the court.

• Судья должен быть беспристрастным в своих решениях.

  A judge must be impartial in their decisions.

• Молодой судья только что окончил юридический факультет.

  The young judge has just graduated from law school.

Verb: To form an opinion or make a decision about something

Translation(s) & Context:

• судить - Used in contexts involving evaluation, criticism, or judgment; can be formal or informal depending on the situation.

Usage Examples:

• Не суди других по своим стандартам.

  Don't judge others by your own standards.

• Жюри будет судить участников конкурса.

  The jury will judge the contest participants.

• Сложно судить о книге, не прочитав её.

  It's hard to judge a book without reading it.

• Он судит людей слишком строго.

  He judges people too harshly.

• Судить о ситуации можно только по фактам.

  One can only judge the situation based on facts.

Russian Forms/Inflections:

For судья (a feminine noun in the first declension):

This noun follows standard Russian declension patterns for feminine nouns ending in -я. It is inflected based on case and number.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	судья	судьи
Genitive	судьи	судей
Dative	судье	судьям
Accusative	судью	судей
Instrumental	судьёй	судьями
Prepositional	судье	судьях

For судить (a verb of the second conjugation):

This is an imperfective verb meaning "to judge." It conjugates based on tense, aspect, person, and number. Below is a partial conjugation table for the present tense:

Person	Singular	Plural
1st	суджу	судим
2nd	судишь	судите
3rd	судит	судят

Note: The perfective counterpart is "осудить," which implies a completed action of judging or condemning.

Russian Synonyms/Antonyms:

Synonyms:

• арбитр (arbitr) - Often used in sports contexts; implies a neutral decision-maker.
• оценивать (otsenivat') - More general, meaning to evaluate or assess.
• решать (reshat') - Means to decide, with a focus on resolution.

Antonyms:

• оправдать (opravdat') - To acquit or justify.
• прощать (proshchat') - To forgive.

Related Phrases:

• Судья в футболе - A phrase meaning "referee in football"; used in sports contexts to refer to an official judge.
• Судить по внешнему виду - Means "to judge by appearance"; a common idiom warning against superficial judgments, with the connotation of making hasty decisions.
• Высший судья - Translates to "supreme judge"; often refers to a high court official or metaphorically to fate or justice.

Usage Notes:

The English word "judge" corresponds closely to "судья" in legal contexts but can be more broadly translated as "судить" when it involves forming opinions. In Russian, "судья" is strictly formal and used for professional roles, while "судить" can appear in everyday speech. Be mindful of gender agreement: "судья" is feminine, so adjectives and verbs must agree (e.g., "хорошая судья" for "good judge"). When choosing between translations, opt for "судить" in evaluative scenarios and "судья" for official positions. Russian often emphasizes context more than English, so consider the aspect (imperfective vs. perfective) for verbs.

Common Errors:

• Error: Using "судья" as a verb, e.g., saying "Я судья это" instead of "Я судю это."
  Correct: "Я судю это" (I judge this). Explanation: "судья" is a noun, not a verb; confusing it leads to grammatical errors. Always conjugate verbs like "судить" properly.

• Error: Forgetting declension, e.g., using "судья" in the wrong case, like "Я видел судья" instead of "Я видел судью."
  Correct: "Я видел судью" (I saw the judge). Explanation: Russian nouns must agree in case; nominative "судья" becomes accusative "судью" after verbs like "видеть."

• Error: Overusing "судить" in formal writing, e.g., translating "judge a case" as "судить дело" when a more precise term like "рассматривать дело" (to hear a case) is better.
  Correct: Use context-specific phrases. Explanation: "судить" can sound too general or judgmental; legal contexts prefer exact terminology to avoid ambiguity.

Cultural Notes:

In Russian culture, the concept of a "judge" (судья) often carries a strong association with the justice system inherited from Soviet and post-Soviet eras, where impartiality and state control are themes in literature and media. For instance, in works by authors like Dostoevsky, judging others reflects moral and existential dilemmas, emphasizing that judgment is not just legal but deeply personal and philosophical.

Related Concepts:

• Прокурор (prosecutor)
• Адвокат (lawyer)
• Правосудие (justice)