justification

American  

[juhs-tuh-fi-kay-shuhn] / ˌdʒʌs tə fɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

• justifications
  plural

1. a reason, fact, circumstance, or explanation that justifies or defends.

   His insulting you was ample justification for you to leave the party.

2. an act of justifying.

   The painter's justification of his failure to finish on time didn't impress me.

3. the state of being justified.

4. Also called justification by faith. Theology. the act of God whereby humankind is made or accounted just, or free from guilt or penalty of sin.

5. Printing. the spacing of words and letters within a line of type so that all full lines in a column have even margins both on the left and on the right.

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justification British  

/ ˌdʒʌstɪfɪˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. reasonable grounds for complaint, defence, etc

2. the act of justifying; proof, vindication, or exculpation

3. theol

   1. the act of justifying

   2. the process of being justified or the condition of having been justified

4. Also called: justification by faith. Protestant theol the doctrine that God vindicates only those who repent and believe in Jesus

5. printing computing the process of adjusting interword spacing in text or data so that both right and left margins are straight

6. computing the process of moving data right or left so that the first or last character occurs in a predefined position

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prejustification
  noun
• rejustification
  noun
• superjustification
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• justifications
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of justification

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin jūstificātiōn-, stem of jūstificātiō, from jūstificāt(us) “justified” (past participle of jūstificāre; see justify) + -iō -ion ( def. )

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Explanation

Close in meaning to an explanation, a justification is specifically for defending or explaining an event. The idea that he was just trying to scare his little sister was a pretty weak justification for the elaborate gag. Like its close cousin "justice," justification is derived from the Latin justificare, which means "to make right." When you offer a justification, you're trying to make something right—or, perhaps, even just. The notion that animals don't have emotions is one of the key justifications for allowing them to suffer. For many people, though, the fact that they suffer is justification enough to prevent it.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

justification justifications

“The American Age Is Over,” an Atlantic headline put it last month, and not without some justification.

From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026

In the Times interview, Horner says that the only justification he was given by Red Bull for his sacking was "it was more Christian Horner Racing than Red Bull Racing".

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026

The less predictable the system and the greater the potential harm, the stronger that justification and oversight have to be.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

Before 9/11 became a justification, a policy, a war or a political symbol, it was an experience of shared human vulnerability.

From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026

The system now, however, requires very little maintenance or justification.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

Over seven pages, the Board of Education provided its justifications for Carvalho’s termination, citing allegedly unreported gifts, unreported outside income and donor-funded travel.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

Yet a large central-bank balance sheet became the norm only as recently as 2008, and the justifications for the policy keep shifting.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026

One of the problems of putting these out now is that it makes it feel like tariffs seeking justifications, not justifications employing tariffs.

From Barron's ● Apr. 12, 2026

Andain's housing association told us that a managing agent, appointed by a freeholder, sets the service charge and it had challenged increases and requested justifications.

From BBC ● Mar. 24, 2026

Without its own justifications, the Dream would collapse upon itself.

From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates

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Related Words

• apology
• approval
• argument
• basis
• confirmation
• explanation
• pretext
• rationale
• rationalization
• vindication

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