magistrate
noun
mag·is·trate
ˈma-jə-ˌstrāt 
-strət
: an official entrusted with administration of the laws: such as
a
: a principal official exercising governmental powers over a major political unit (such as a nation)
b
: a local official exercising administrative and often judicial functions
c
: a local judiciary official having limited original jurisdiction (see jurisdiction sense 1) especially in criminal cases
Examples of magistrate in a Sentence
chose to take their case before the local magistrate
Recent Examples on the Web
Ahead of a major courthouse expansion project, Hamilton County has added two magistrates with two Superior Court judges coming next year to ease judge workloads and speed up the legal process for people in both the criminal and civil systems.
—
John Tuohy, IndyStar, 14 July 2025
More than 100,000 photos, thousands of chats and audio messages between Guede and the unnamed victim are among the evidence to be considered in the trial, according to the investigating magistrate Rita Cialoni, who ordered Guede to stand trial in a preliminary hearing in Viterbo on Friday.
—Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 12 July 2025
The magistrate said Friday that the probe will examine whether the platform broke French law by manipulating algorithms and illegally harvesting user data.
—Natasha Bracken, semafor.com, 11 July 2025
No wonder the Tennessee magistrate judge, backed up by her supervising judge, ordered Abrego Garcia released.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for magistrate
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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John Tuohy, IndyStar, 14 July 2025
More than 100,000 photos, thousands of chats and audio messages between Guede and the unnamed victim are among the evidence to be considered in the trial, according to the investigating magistrate Rita Cialoni, who ordered Guede to stand trial in a preliminary hearing in Viterbo on Friday.
—Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN Money, 12 July 2025
The magistrate said Friday that the probe will examine whether the platform broke French law by manipulating algorithms and illegally harvesting user data.
—Natasha Bracken, semafor.com, 11 July 2025
No wonder the Tennessee magistrate judge, backed up by her supervising judge, ordered Abrego Garcia released.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for magistrate
Cite this Entry
“Magistrate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/magistrate. Accessed 26 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
magistrate
noun
mag·is·trate
ˈmaj-ə-ˌstrāt
-strət
1
: a chief officer of government (as over a nation)
the president is the chief magistrate
2
: a local official with some judicial power
Legal Definition
magistrate
noun
mag·is·trate
ˈma-jə-ˌstrāt, -strət
1
: a civil or judicial official vested with limited judicial powers
a traffic magistrate
2
a
: a municipal, state, or federal judicial officer commonly authorized to issue warrants, hear minor cases, and conduct preliminary or pretrial hearings
called also magistrate judge
b
: an official (as a judge) authorized to perform the role or function of a magistrate
magistrate means an officer having power to issue a warrant for the arrest of a person charged with a public offense—Arizona Revised Statutes
Arizona Revised StatutesEtymology
Latin magistratus magistracy, magistrate, from magistr-, magister master, political superior
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