Meanings
- idiomaticI do not believe what you said.
“What? No. No! That's not true — he — wait just a —” stammered Fancy. Kinslow cut him off, “Tell it to the judge!”
2008, Allan Michael Hardin, Sidetracked, page 482 more examples
Al slid off Rhodes's back and moved away from him, hands in the air. “I was just being helpful.” “Tell it to the judge,” Rhodes said, and he took off after Frankie.
2012, Bill Crider, Murder of a Beauty Shop Queen: A Dan Rhodes Mystery, page 162“Wait a minute, you don't understand, I wouldn`t kill my best friend!” Robert continued yelling. “Yeah, yeah, that's what they all say, tell it to the judge.”
2011, Steven W. Moore, Her Husband's Crossing: A Man Remembering His Past and His Love for One Woman, page 130 - Synonym of I don't care; synonym of talk to the hand.
Synonyms: I don't care
Synonyms & antonyms
phraseSynonym of I don't care; synonym of talk to the hand.
Origin
Suggesting what the police might say to a suspect who protests his innocence prior to trial.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
tell it to the judge. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tell%20it%20to%20the%20judge
“tell it to the judge.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tell%20it%20to%20the%20judge. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tell it to the judge,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tell%20it%20to%20the%20judge.
Source: tell it to the judge on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.