justified

American  

[juhs-tuh-fahyd] / ˈdʒʌs təˌfaɪd /

adjective

1. having been shown to be just or right.

   If a parent sides with one child over another, one will feel righteous and justified, and the other will feel misunderstood and resentful.

2. warranted or well-grounded.

   The commission’s stance is that bans on GMO crops must be scientifically justified and crop-specific.

   I accept that there may be a penalty for justified civil disobedience, but I must weigh that penalty against the good that can be accomplished.

3. Printing. aligned with one or, especially, both margins.

   Justified text looks a little neater, but there's nothing particularly wrong with having a ragged right edge.

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noun

1. Theology. Usually the justified a person or persons believed to be worthy, redeemed, or absolved.

   Good works are logically and morally necessary, for they are nothing more or less than the evidence that one is indeed among the justified.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of justify.

Other Word Forms

• half-justified adjective
• unjustified adjective
• well-justified adjective

Etymology

Origin of justified

justify ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Australia's ban was justified by campaigners and the government as necessary to protect children from harmful content and addictive algorithms.

From BBC

But what we do know, for now, is that the power is real and - so far - the hype is justified.

From BBC

"This atrocity cannot be justified, cannot be concealed, and must not be met with silence and indifference," he said.

From BBC

The details differ, but the impulse is the same: a search for villains who make anger feel justified.

From The Wall Street Journal

Rather, he said, leaders in a republic must seek to “mold” public sentiment—to convince an often skeptical populace that a controversial course of action is justified.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• constitutional
• contractual
• fair
• juridical
• lawful
• legitimate
• proper
• statutory
• valid