junk

¹ American  

[juhngk] / dʒʌŋk /

noun

1. any old or discarded material, as metal, paper, or rags.

   Synonyms:

   refuse, debris, litter, rubbish

2. anything that is regarded as worthless, meaningless, or contemptible; trash.

   Synonyms:

   refuse, debris, litter, rubbish

3. old cable or cordage used when untwisted for making gaskets, swabs, oakum, etc.

4. Nautical Slang. salt junk.

5. Baseball Slang. relatively slow, unorthodox pitches that are deceptive to the batter in movement or pace, as knuckleballs or forkballs.

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verb (used with object)

1. to cast aside as junk; discard as no longer of use; scrap.

adjective

1. cheap, worthless, unwanted, or trashy.

junk ² American  

[juhngk] / dʒʌŋk /

noun

1. a seagoing ship with a traditional Chinese design and used primarily in Chinese waters, having square sails spread by battens, a high stern, and usually a flat bottom.

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junk ³ American  

[juhngk] / dʒʌŋk /

noun

Slang.

1. narcotics, especially heroin.

2. the external genitals.

   I kicked him in the junk.

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junk ¹ British  

/ dʒʌŋk /

noun

1. discarded or secondhand objects, etc, collectively

2. informal

   1. rubbish generally

   2. nonsense

      the play was absolute junk

3. slang any narcotic drug, esp heroin

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verb

1. informal (tr) to discard as junk; scrap

junk ² British  

/ dʒʌŋk /

noun

1. a sailing vessel used in Chinese waters and characterized by a very high poop, flat bottom, and square sails supported by battens

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Etymology

Origin of junk¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English jonk, junk “(in sailing) old rope or cable”; further origin uncertain

Origin of junk²

First recorded in 1545–55; from Portuguese junco, from Malay jong “large boat, ship,” possibly from dialectal Chinese (Xiamen) chûn; compare Guangdong (Cantonese) dialect syùhn, (Mandarin) Chinese chuán

Origin of junk³

First recorded in 1920–25; perhaps special use of junk ¹

Example Sentences

Invoices for money owed, receipts for purchases made, junk mail, quotes for repairs to the roof and the sink that’s leaking in the bathroom.

From Literature

“I was just like, God, I don’t want to junk up my book with stuff that everyone’s just talking about on social media,” she says.

From The Wall Street Journal

The secret to the company’s success was it managed its brand well and didn’t make “lousy junk” that breaks down, he said.

From Los Angeles Times

"This AI is just putting junk out there."

From BBC

From board game clubs to junk journaling meetups, there’s so many different ways to connect and maybe try something new.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• clutter
• debris
• rubbish
• rubble
• trash