junction
Americannoun
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junctions
plural
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an act of joining; combining.
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the state of being joined; union.
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a place or point where two or more things are joined, as a seam or joint.
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a place or point where two or more things meet or converge.
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a place or station where railroad lines meet, cross, or diverge.
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an intersection of streets, highways, or roads.
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something that joins other things together.
He used the device as a junction between the branch circuit and the main power lines.
- Synonyms:
- connection
noun
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a place where several routes, lines, or roads meet, link, or cross each other
a railway junction
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a point on a motorway where traffic may leave or join it
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electronics
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a contact between two different metals or other materials
a thermocouple junction
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a transition region between regions of differing electrical properties in a semiconductor
a p-n junction
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a connection between two or more conductors or sections of transmission lines
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the act of joining or the state of being joined
Synonym Usage
Junction, juncture refer to a place, line, or point at which two or more things join. A junction is also a place where things come together: the junction of two rivers. A juncture is a line or point at which two bodies are joined, or a point of exigency or crisis in time: the juncture of the head and neck; a critical juncture in a struggle.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of junction
First recorded in 1705–15; from Latin junctiōn- (stem of junctiō ), equivalent to junct(us), past participle of jungere “to join” ( jung- join + -tus past participle suffix) + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
The noun junction refers to a meeting or a joining of some kind. If you live at the junction of Main and State streets, then your house is where those two streets meet. Junction often refers to the point where streets or railway lines come together, but it can describe other things that are joined, especially things that are in motion or transmit other things. For example, your body has nerve junctions — the places where your nerves come together. You may go swimming at the junction of two rivers. Junction can also refer to something that connects things, like a junction you use to connect electrical cords.
Vocabulary lists containing junction
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
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Greetings, World Traveler! — List 2
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Prince Caspian
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In a statement, the Senedd Deputy Transport Minister Mark Hooper said this could include potential junction closures in and around Newport to improve traffic flow.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
The study, "Neuromuscular junction failure in sarcopenia is linked to NaV1.4 loss and reversed by ClC-1 inhibition," was published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 24, 2026
"A long-held assumption in the field was that the neuromuscular junction remains reliable during aging, and some even suggested it may get better with aging," Arnold said.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 24, 2026
Police Scotland said the 45-year-old man was hit by a black Mini Cooper, close to junction 29, at about 23:45 on Sunday.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
If she’d meant this junction, wouldn’t it be “take the direction you despise”? “The side you despise,” Tally mumbled, remembering something.
From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld
Ministers are considering whether to close or partially close three junctions, potentially by 2028.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
Rush hour traffic was moving slowly when Rios’s Expedition entered one of the busiest junctions in the San Fernando Valley, but the SUV did not appear to brake before it T-boned the bus, witnesses said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
Chemical synapses use neurotransmitters to pass messages between cells, while electrical synapses, also called gap junctions, transmit signals through direct electrical currents.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026
But Deutsche Bahn criticised the decision, saying the move could "worsen the structural problems of rail junctions".
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
In February 1943 they were assigned to defend and protect railroad junctions and bridges near a city called Voronezh.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
