supreme court

noun

often capitalized S&C
Synonyms of supreme courtnext
1
: the highest judicial tribunal in a political unit (such as a nation or state)
2
: a court of original jurisdiction in New York state subordinate to a final court of appeals

Examples of supreme court in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Same with state governments — including legislatures that pursue new laws, state supreme courts that determine the laws’ constitutionality, attorneys general who decide whether to defend them and district attorneys who enforce them. —Geoff Mulvihill, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2024 Voters in at least 30 states will decide who will fill 69 state supreme court seats in judicial elections, with the ideological balances of two high courts — in Michigan and Ohio — at stake. —Kaia Hubbard, CBS News, 23 Oct. 2024 This overhaul is the only way to eliminate the corruption in our courts and confront a supreme court that has blocked AMLO's security and energy agenda. —The Week Uk, theweek, 29 Sep. 2024 Like most of Venezuela’s official institutions, its supreme court is an assemblage of pro-government loyalists. —Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 12 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for supreme court 

Word History

First Known Use

1686, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of supreme court was in 1686

Dictionary Entries Near supreme court

Supreme Being

supreme court

supreme good

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Supreme court.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supreme%20court. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

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Kids Definition

supreme court

noun
: the highest court in a political unit (as the U.S. or one of its states)

Legal Definition

supreme court

noun
su·​preme court
1
: the highest court in a nation or state
specifically, capitalized S&C : the highest court in the judicial branch of the U.S. government that has original jurisdiction over controversies involving ambassadors or other ministers or consuls but whose main activity is as the court of last resort exercising appellate jurisdiction over cases involving federal law
2
capitalized S&C : a court of original jurisdiction in New York

Note: The court of last resort in New York is the Court of Appeals.

More from Merriam-Webster on supreme court

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for supreme court

Britannica English: Translation of supreme court for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about supreme court

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