| Main Entry: | |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | person who settles dispute |
| Synonyms: | adjudicator, arbitrator, fixer, go-between, holdout, judge, maven, mediator, middleperson, moderator, referee, umpire |
| Notes: | an arbitrator is appointed; an arbiter has no such authority but his/her opinion is valued |
| Main Entry: | authority |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | expert, animate or inanimate |
| Synonyms: | CEO, arbiter, aristocrat, bible, big cheese, big shot, big wig, boss, brains, brass, buff*, city hall, connoisseur, czar, egghead, establishment*, exec, executive, expert, feds, front office, governor, guru, ivory dome, judge, kingfish, kingpin, law*, power elite, pro, professional, professor, pundit, scholar, specialist, textbook, top brass, top dog, top hand, upstairs, veteran, virtuoso, whiz, wizard |
| Main Entry: | connoisseur |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | authority |
| Synonyms: | adept, aesthete, aficionado, appreciator, arbiter, bon vivant, buff*, cognoscente, critic, devotee, dilettante, epicure, expert, fan, freak*, gourmet, judge, maven*, nut*, one into, savant, specialist |
| Antonyms: | ignoramus |
| Main Entry: | critic |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | analyst, interpreter |
| Synonyms: | analyzer, annotator, arbiter, authority, caricaturist, cartoonist, commentator, connoisseur, diagnostic, evaluator, expert, expositor, judge, pundit, reviewer, sharpshooter |
| Main Entry: | judge |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | person who arbitrates |
| Synonyms: | adjudicator, appraiser, arbiter, assessor, authority, bench, chancellor, conciliator, court, critic, evaluator, expert, honor, inspector, intercessor, intermediary, interpreter, judiciary, justice, justice of peace, legal official, magister, magistrate, marshal, moderator, negotiator, ombudsman, peacemaker, reconciler, referee, umpire, warden |
| Main Entry: | mediator |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | person who negotiates agreement |
| Synonyms: | advocate, arbiter, arbitrator, broker, conciliator, fixer, go-between, interagent, interceder, intermediary, intermediator, judge, medium, middle person, moderator, negotiator, peacemaker, ref, referee, rent-a-judge, troubleshooter, umpire |
| Notes: | arbitrators make a decision/judgment but mediators do not |
| Antonyms: | arguer, fighter |
| Main Entry: | referee |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | person who mediates, judges |
| Synonyms: | adjudicator, arbiter, arbitrator, conciliator, judge, ref, umpire |
| Notes: | referee originally referred to a person appointed by the British Parliament to examine patent applications (1621) and was formed from English refer and -ee. The sense of 'an arbitrator or person to whom a dispute is referred' was first recorded in 1690; by 1840 the word acquired the further sense of 'the judge of play in games and sports.' Baseball, boxing, and cricket have umpires; basketball, hockey, rugby, and football have referees - and American football has both. |
| Main Entry: | umpire |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | person who settles dispute |
| Synonyms: | adjudicator, arbiter, arbitrator, assessor, compromiser, inspector, judge, justice, mediator, moderator, negotiator, peacemaker, proprietor, ref, referee, settler, ump |
| Notes: | referee originally referred to a person appointed by the British Parliament to examine patent applications (1621) and was formed from English refer and -ee. The sense of 'an arbitrator or person to whom a dispute is referred' was first recorded in 1690; by 1840 the word acquired the further sense of 'the judge of play in games and sports.' Baseball, boxing, and cricket have umpires; basketball, hockey, rugby, and football have referees - and American football has both. |
| Main Entry: | third party |
| Part of Speech: | noun |
| Definition: | group other than principals |
| Synonyms: | arbiter, arbitrator, mediator, minor party, third force, unbiased observer |