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"judge" in seven languages

Meaningjudge

Spanish

juez

/xweθ/

masc.inherited

plural: jueces

A woman judge is la jueza (or la juez).

French

juge

/ʒyʒ/

masc.inherited

Italian

giudice

/ˈdʒuditʃe/

masc.inherited

Portuguese

juiz

/ʒuˈis/

masc.inherited

Portuguese loses intervocalic -D-: IŪDICEM → juiz.

Romanian

judecător

/ʒudekəˈtor/

masc.other source · judeca 'to judge' (Latin IŪDICĀRE) + -ător

The inherited jude (IŪDICEM) survives only as a historical title.

Catalan

jutge

/ˈʒudʒə/

masc.inherited

English

judge

/dʒʌdʒ/

from Latin/French · Old French juge

English → ItalianjudgegiudiceCognateSame source — inherited, learned or borrowed. You can recognize it.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

IŪDICEM (nom. IŪDEX)‘judge, one who speaks the law (IŪS + DĪCERE)’

All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.

The story

Italian giudice keeps all three syllables of IŪDICEM; Spanish squeezed it into one (juez) and French into juge, the form English borrowed. Latin I- became x, ʒ and dʒ, as in IOCUM → juego, jeu, gioco.

English relatives: judicial, judiciary, prejudice, judicious

Sound laws at work

Initial I- (J-) and G before E, I

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In a sentence

  • esEl juez escuchó a las dos partes.
  • frLe juge a écouté les deux parties.
  • itIl giudice ha ascoltato entrambe le parti.
  • ptO juiz ouviu as duas partes.
  • roJudecătorul a ascultat ambele părți.
  • caEl jutge va escoltar les dues parts.
  • enThe judge listened to both sides.

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