appellate

/əˈpel.ət/ (bre, ipa) · /əˈpel.ət/ (ame, ipa) · /ə-ˈpe-lət/ (ame, mw)

appellate — adjective

  • appellatepositive
  • more appellatecomparative
  • most appellatesuperlative

1. describing a court, judge, or legal process whose role is to review a decision a

1.形容詞C2
釋義

describing a court, judge, or legal process whose role is to review a decision already made by a lower court, so that the losing side has a chance to argue that the earlier ruling should be changed.

例句

The appellate court overturned the verdict after reviewing the trial transcript.

attributive: appellate + court

Judge Martinez served on the appellate bench in California for twelve years.

collocation: appellate bench / appellate judge

同義詞
  • appeals

    used the same way (appeals court / appeals judge); slightly more everyday in American English

  • reviewing

    broader; describes any body that re-examines a decision, not only courts

反義詞
  • trial

    as in 'trial court' — the lower court that hears a case for the first time

  • original

    as in 'original jurisdiction' — the power to hear a case before any other court does

文法句型

appellate + noun (court, judge, jurisdiction, division)

用法筆記

Almost always used attributively (before a noun) and only in legal contexts. The noun it modifies names a court, judge, lawyer, document, or stage of the legal process — not the case itself. Distinguish from 'appealing', which is a separate adjective meaning 'attractive'.

常見錯誤

❌The verdict was appellate.
✅The verdict is open to appeal.
💡'appellate' modifies the court or process, not the ruling itself.
❌Her dress is very appellate.
✅Her dress is very appealing.
💡'appellate' is a legal term, not a synonym of 'appealing'.