chief justice

noun

: the presiding or principal judge of a court of justice

Examples of chief justice in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The chief justice did not explain his dissent, but the court’s three liberals chastised the majority for getting involved at the early stage of the case. Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 4 Apr. 2025 The chief justice rarely wades into the political fray in any way other than issuing his opinions. Sean Rameswaram, Vox, 27 Mar. 2025 While the Roberts court has repeatedly stood up to the Trump administration's actions, the president and his supporters haven't always viewed the chief justice as an adversary. Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY, 23 Mar. 2025 On Wednesday evening, just hours before a midnight deadline, the Supreme Court's chief justice paused a federal judge's order to disperse some $2 billion in frozen foreign aid. Emily Feng, NPR, 27 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for chief justice

Word History

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of chief justice was in 1534

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Cite this Entry

“Chief justice.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chief%20justice. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

chief justice

noun
: the presiding or principal judge of a court of justice

Legal Definition

chief justice

noun
: a chief judge of a usually higher level court
specifically, often capitalized : the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
chief justiceship noun

More from Merriam-Webster on chief justice

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