justifiable

[ juhs-tuh-fahy-uh-buhl, juhs-tuh-fahy- ]
See synonyms for: justifiablejustifiably on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. capable of being justified; that can be shown to be or can be defended as being just, right, or warranted; defensible: justifiable homicide.

Origin of justifiable

1
From Middle French, dating back to 1515–25; see origin at justify, -able

Other words from justifiable

  • jus·ti·fi·a·bil·i·ty, jus·ti·fi·a·ble·ness, noun
  • jus·ti·fi·a·bly, adverb
  • un·jus·ti·fi·a·ble, adjective
  • un·jus·ti·fi·a·ble·ness, noun
  • un·jus·ti·fi·a·bly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use justifiable in a sentence

  • Perhaps this self-condemnation was not quite reasonable, for Mrs. Codling provoked Wanless most unjustifiably.

    The Life of Thomas Wanless, Peasant | Alexander Johnstone Wilson
  • I may have been wrong, or idly and unjustifiably curious, but I leaned over to hear what the lines might be.

    Byron | Richard Edgcumbe
  • And Buck Cowan himself came to feel quite unjustifiably a creator's pride in the car.

    The Wrong Twin | Harry Leon Wilson
  • "I tell you she wanted to keep them," said Dale unjustifiably.

    A Change of Air | Anthony Hope
  • I must not reject the truth because another has unjustifiably adopted it.

    Ormond, Volume II (of 3) | Charles Brockden Brown

British Dictionary definitions for justifiable

justifiable

/ (ˈdʒʌstɪˌfaɪəbəl) /


adjective
  1. capable of being justified; understandable

Derived forms of justifiable

  • justifiability or justifiableness, noun
  • justifiably, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012