recuse

verb

re·​cuse ri-ˈkyüz 

recused; recusing

transitive verb

: to disqualify (oneself) as judge in a particular case

broadly : to remove (oneself) from participation to avoid a conflict of interest

recusal

ri-ˈkyü-zəl 

noun

Did you know?

If you ever find yourself accused of refusing to recuse yourself, look on the bright side: you may be in a legal predicament, but you’ve also got a great occasion to learn some etymology. Accuse and recuse not only share space in the vocabulary of the courtroom, they both ultimately trace back to the Latin word causa, meaning “legal case,” “reason,” or “cause.” The current legal use of recuse to mean “to disqualify (oneself) as a judge” didn’t settle into frequent use until the 19th century. Broader application soon followed, and you can now recuse yourself from such things as debates and decisions as well as court cases.

Examples of recuse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Because Justice Samuel Alito recused himself from the case, an eight-person bench will decide the case for the Supreme Court, leaving open the possibility of a rare 4-4 deadlock. — Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 5 Oct. 2026

Boulder, Colorado, which brought the case against Exxon Mobil and Suncor Energy, needs only four votes to win after Justice Samuel Alito recused himself from the case without explanation. — ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026

Last term the justices deadlocked on the issue in a separate case after Justice Amy Coney Barrett recused herself because of a conflict. — Nina Totenberg, NPR, 3 Oct. 2026

Miami-Dade Democrats have called for County Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia to recuse herself from this November’s midterm canvassing board, following Garcia’s public endorsement of Florida’s Amendment 3 property tax proposal. — Joshua Ceballos, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, to refuse, reject, from Anglo-French recuser, from Latin recusare

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for recuse

• accrues
• accuse
• aircrews
• amuse
• bamboos
• breakthroughs
• canoes
• cashews
• chartreuse
• confuse
• construes
• defuse

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Legal Definition

recuse

transitive verb

re·​cuse ri-ˈkyüz 

recused; recusing

1

: to challenge or object to (as a judge) as having prejudice or a conflict of interest

2

: to disqualify (as oneself or another judge or official) for a proceeding by a judicial act because of prejudice or conflict of interest

an order recusing the district attorney from any proceeding may be appealed by the district attorney or the Attorney General

—California Penal Code

recusement noun

Etymology

Anglo-French recuser to refuse, from Middle French, from Latin recusare, from re- back + causari to give a reason, from causa cause, reason