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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

just.

Factually right, correct; factual.

4 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/d͡ʒʌst/General-American, Received-Pronunciation/d͡ʒʊst/Northern-England/d͡ʒɛst/dialectal/d͡ʒɪst/dialectal

  1. Factually right, correct; factual.

    It is a just assessment of the facts.

  2. Rationally right, correct.

  3. Morally right; upright, righteous, equitable; fair.

    It looks like a just solution at first glance.

  4. Proper, adequate.

Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ey- Proto-Indo-European *-u Proto-Indo-European *h₂óyu Proto-Indo-European *h₂yew- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *h₂yéwos Proto-Italic *jowos Archaic Latin *iowos, *iowez- Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Italic *-tos Archaic Latin -tus Archaic Latin iovestos Latin iūstus Old French justebor. Middle English juste English just From Middle English juste, from Old French juste, from Latin iūstus (“just, lawful, rightful, true, due, proper, moderate”), from Proto-Italic *jowestos, related to Latin iūs (“law, right”); ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂yew-. Compare Scots juist (“just”), Saterland Frisian juust (“just”), West Frisian just (“just”), Dutch juist (“just”), German Low German jüst (“jüst”), German just (“just”), Danish just (“just”), Swedish just (“just”). Doublet of giusto.

adv/d͡ʒʌst/General-American, Received-Pronunciation/d͡ʒʊst/Northern-England/d͡ʒɛst/dialectal/d͡ʒɪst/dialectal

  1. Only, simply, merely.

    not-comparable
    Just plant a few tomatoes, unless you can freeze or dry them.
    He calls it vermilion, but it's just red to me.

  2. Only, simply, merely. Introduces a disappointing or surprising outcome that renders futile something previously mentioned.

    not-comparable

  3. Used to reduce the force of an imperative; simply.

    not-comparable
    Just follow the directions on the box.

  4. Used to increase the force of an imperative; simply, without questioning.

    not-comparable
    I'm tired of playing games – just get it done.

  5. Used to convey a less serious or formal tone.

    not-comparable
    I just called to say "hi".

  6. Absolutely, positively.

    not-comparable
    It is just splendid!
    just fine

  7. Barely, hardly, scarcely. Moments ago, only very recently.

    not-comparable
    They just left, but you may leave a message at the desk.

  8. Barely, hardly, scarcely. By a narrow margin; closely; narrowly; almost not.

    not-comparable
    The fastball just missed my head!
    The fire department arrived just in time.

  9. Exactly, precisely, perfectly.

    not-comparable
    He wants everything just right for the big day.
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ey- Proto-Indo-European *-u Proto-Indo-European *h₂óyu Proto-Indo-European *h₂yew- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *h₂yéwos Proto-Italic *jowos Archaic Latin *iowos, *iowez- Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Italic *-tos Archaic Latin -tus Archaic Latin iovestos Latin iūstus Old French justebor. Middle English juste English just From Middle English juste, from Old French juste, from Latin iūstus (“just, lawful, rightful, true, due, proper, moderate”), from Proto-Italic *jowestos, related to Latin iūs (“law, right”); ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂yew-. Compare Scots juist (“just”), Saterland Frisian juust (“just”), West Frisian just (“just”), Dutch juist (“just”), German Low German jüst (“jüst”), German just (“just”), Danish just (“just”), Swedish just (“just”). Doublet of giusto.

intj/d͡ʒʌst/General-American, Received-Pronunciation/d͡ʒʊst/Northern-England/d͡ʒɛst/dialectal/d͡ʒɪst/dialectal

  1. Expressing dismay or discontent.

    slang
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ey- Proto-Indo-European *-u Proto-Indo-European *h₂óyu Proto-Indo-European *h₂yew- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *h₂yéwos Proto-Italic *jowos Archaic Latin *iowos, *iowez- Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Italic *-tos Archaic Latin -tus Archaic Latin iovestos Latin iūstus Old French justebor. Middle English juste English just From Middle English juste, from Old French juste, from Latin iūstus (“just, lawful, rightful, true, due, proper, moderate”), from Proto-Italic *jowestos, related to Latin iūs (“law, right”); ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂yew-. Compare Scots juist (“just”), Saterland Frisian juust (“just”), West Frisian just (“just”), Dutch juist (“just”), German Low German jüst (“jüst”), German just (“just”), Danish just (“just”), Swedish just (“just”). Doublet of giusto.

noun/d͡ʒʌst/General-American, Received-Pronunciation

  1. A joust, tournament.

Where this word comes from

Variation of joust, presumably ultimately from Latin iuxta (“near, besides”).

verb/d͡ʒʌst/General-American, Received-Pronunciation

  1. To joust, fight a tournament.

Where this word comes from

Variation of joust, presumably ultimately from Latin iuxta (“near, besides”).

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.