journal

[jur-nl]

noun

1. a daily record, as of occurrences, experiences, or observations.

   She kept a journal during her European trip.

2. a newspaper, especially a daily one.

3. a periodical or magazine, especially one published for a special group, learned society, or profession.

   the October issue of The English Journal.

4. a record, usually daily, of the proceedings and transactions of a legislative body, an organization, etc.

5. Bookkeeping.

   1. a daybook.

   2. (in the double-entry method) a book into which all transactions are entered from the daybook or blotter to facilitate posting into the ledger.

6. Nautical.,  a log or logbook.

7. Machinery.,  the portion of a shaft or axle contained by a plain bearing.

verb (used without object)

1. to write self-examining or reflective journal entries, especially in school or as part of psychotherapy.

   Students should journal as part of a portfolio assessment program.

journal

/ ˈdʒɜːnəl /

noun

1. a newspaper or periodical

2. a book in which a daily record of happenings, etc, is kept

3. an official record of the proceedings of a legislative body

4. accounting

   1. Also called: Book of Original Entry. one of several books in which transactions are initially recorded to facilitate subsequent entry in the ledger

   2. another name for daybook

5. the part of a shaft or axle in contact with or enclosed by a bearing

6. a plain cylindrical bearing to support a shaft or axle

Other Word Forms

• journalary adjective
• journalish adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of journal¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Old French journal “daily,” from Late Latin diurnālis; diurnal

Word History and Origins

Origin of journal¹

C14: from Old French: daily, from Latin diurnālis; see _diurnal

Example Sentences

They write their feelings down in a journal or talk to friends or mental-health professionals.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The findings appear in the journal Exposure and Health.

Read more on Science Daily

Her research was published in US journal Pediatrics in June.

Read more on Barron's

Ms. Griffin balances these journal entries with more downbeat ones, which conveyed the precariousness of these transformed lives.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

His meticulous survey takes in dozens of sources, from the obscure to the well-known: pamphlets to legal codes, sermons to atlases, maps, travel narratives, even journals kept by ships’ captains.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• account 
• almanac 
• annals 
• calendar 
• daily 
• diary 
• gazette 
• magazine 
• memoir 
• monthly 
• newspaper 
• note 
• paper 
• periodical 
• publication 
• review 
• tabloid 
• weekly