juncture

American  

[juhngk-cher] / ˈdʒʌŋk tʃər /

noun

1. a point of time, especially one made critical or important by a concurrence of circumstances.

   At this juncture, we must decide whether to stay or to walk out.

2. a serious state of affairs; crisis.

   The matter has reached a juncture and a decision must be made.

3. the line or point at which two bodies are joined; joint or articulation; seam.

4. the act of joining.

5. the state of being joined.

6. something by which two things are joined.

7. Phonetics.

   1. a pause or other phonological feature or modification of a feature, as the lengthening of a preceding phoneme or the strengthening of a following one, marking a transition or break between sounds, especially marking the phonological boundary of a word, clause, or sentence: it is present in such words as night-rate and re-seed and absent in such words as nitrate and recede.

   2. the point in a word or group of words at which such a pause or other junctural marker occurs.

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juncture British  

/ ˈdʒʌŋktʃə /

noun

1. a point in time, esp a critical one (often in the phrase at this juncture )

2. linguistics

   1. a pause in speech or a feature of pronunciation that introduces, accompanies, or replaces a pause

   2. the set of phonological features signalling a division between words, such as those that distinguish a name from an aim

3. a less common word for junction

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juncture Idioms  

1. see at this point (juncture).

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Related Words

See junction.

Etymology

Origin of juncture

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin junctūra, equivalent to junct(us) ( junction ) + -ūra -ure

Example Sentences

“We feel that we have no choice, at this juncture, but to withdraw as counsel and ask to be removed,” Jackson told Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Theresa R. McGonigle.

From The Wall Street Journal

“We feel that we have no choice at this juncture, but to ask to be relieved,” Jackson told L.A.

From Los Angeles Times

Hasriya said the move to replace the currency comes at a "pivotal national juncture that reflects the beginning of a new economic and monetary era".

From Barron's

"We've spent the last 20 years reviewing the evidence at various junctures, as science improves," he said.

From BBC

The announcements come at a particularly interesting juncture.

From BBC

Related Words

• crossroad