just

English Online Dictionary. What means just‎? What does just mean?

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English juste, from Old French juste, from Latin iūstus (“just, lawful, rightful, true, due, proper, moderate”), from Proto-Italic *jowestos, related to Latin iūs (“law, right”); ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂yew-. Compare Scots juist (“just”), Saterland Frisian juust (“just”), West Frisian just (“just”), Dutch juist (“just”), German Low German jüst (“jüst”), German just (“just”), Danish just (“just”), Swedish just (“just”). Doublet of giusto.

Alternative forms

• jes, jes', jest, jist, jus'
• iust (obsolete)

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA^(key): /d͡ʒʌst/
• (adverb, unstressed) IPA^(key): /d͡ʒəs(t)/
• (dialectal) IPA^(key): /d͡ʒɛst/, /d͡ʒɪst/, /d͡ʒʊst/ (see jest, jist)
• Rhymes: -ʌst

Adjective

just (comparative juster or more just, superlative justest or most just)

1. Factually right, correct; factual.

2. Rationally right, correct.
3. Morally right; upright, righteous, equitable; fair.
4. Proper, adequate.

Synonyms

• right, correct
• righteous, equitable
• proper, adequate

Antonyms

• unjust

Derived terms

Related terms

• justice

Translations

Adverb

just (not comparable)

2. Only, simply, merely.
   1. Introduces a disappointing or surprising outcome that renders futile something previously mentioned.

      I spent two hours cooking my favorite recipe, just to burn the rice and ruin the meal.

      I helped him out just for him to betray me.

3. (sentence adverb) Used to reduce the force of an imperative; simply.

4. Used to convey a less serious or formal tone

5. Used to show humility.

6. (degree) absolutely, positively

8. Moments ago, recently.
9. By a narrow margin; closely; nearly.
10. Exactly, precisely, perfectly.

Synonyms

• (only): merely, simply; see also Thesaurus:merely
• (recently): freshly, lately, newly
• (by a narrow margin): barely, hardly, scarcely; see also Thesaurus:slightly
• (exactly): on the dot, smack-dab; see also Thesaurus:exactly

Derived terms

Translations

Interjection

just

1. (slang) Expressing dismay or discontent.

Etymology 2

Variation of joust, presumably ultimately from Latin iuxta (“near, besides”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA^(key): /d͡ʒʌst/
• Rhymes: -ʌst

Noun

just (plural justs)

1. A joust, tournament.

Verb

just (third-person singular simple present justs, present participle justing, simple past and past participle justed)

1. To joust, fight a tournament.

Translations

References

• Stanley, Oma (1937) “I. Vowel Sounds in Stressed Syllables”, in The Speech of East Texas (American Speech: Reprints and Monographs; 2), New York: Columbia University Press, →DOI, →ISBN, § 12, page 27.
• “just”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “just”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• UJTs, juts

Catalan

Etymology

Inherited from Old Catalan just, from Latin iūstus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈʒust]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈd͡ʒust]

Adjective

just (feminine justa, masculine plural justs or justos, feminine plural justes)

1. fair; just

   Antonym: injust

2. perfect, almost perfect

Derived terms

Related terms

• injust
• injustícia
• justícia

Adverb

just

1. justly

Further reading

• “just” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “just”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “just” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “just” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Estonian

Etymology

From Middle Low German just or Swedish just. Possibly from German just. See also justament.

Adverb

just (not comparable)

1. exactly, precisely, just

2. recently, just now, just

3. really (softens what has been said)

Finnish

Etymology

Borrowed from Swedish just.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈjust/, [ˈjus̠t]
• Rhymes: -ust
• Hyphenation^(key): just

Adverb

just (colloquial)

1. just, exactly, precisely, perfectly

2. recently, just now

Interjection

just (colloquial)

1. I see, uh-huh, oh well

Synonyms

both:

• aivan
• juuri
• justiin
• justiinsa
• justsa

adverb:

• ihan
• tarkalleen
• täsmälleen

Further reading

• “just”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎^[2] (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-02

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin iūstus, jūstus.

Adjective

just

1. just, right, correct, proper
2. exact
3. adequate
4. apt

Derived terms

• justeapont
• justeben

Related terms

• justâ
• juste
• justece
• justificâ
• justizie

German

Etymology

Derived from Latin iūste, iūstus, perhaps via Middle Dutch juust.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jʊst/

Adverb

just

1. (higher register) just

   Synonyms: gerade, (archaic) justament

   just in dem Moment als… ― just at the moment as…

Further reading

• “just” in Duden online
• “just” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
• Friedrich Kluge (1989) “just”, in Elmar Seebold, editor, Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache [Etymological Dictionary of the German Language] (in German), 22nd edition, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, →ISBN, page 344

Ingrian

Etymology

Ultimately from a Germanic language (compare Middle Low German just and Swedish just). Related to Estonian just and Finnish just.

Pronunciation

• (Ala-Laukaa) IPA^(key): /ˈjust/, [ˈjus̠t]
• (Soikkola) IPA^(key): /ˈjust/, [ˈjuʃt]
• Rhymes: -ust
• Hyphenation: just

Adverb

just

1. exactly

   just niin ― just so

References

• Ruben E. Nirvi (1971) Inkeroismurteiden Sanakirja, Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, page 111

Latvian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [just]

Verb

just (transitive, 1st conjugation, present jūtu, jūti, jūt, past jutu)

1. to feel (to perceive with one's sense organs)

   just aukstumu, karstumu, sāpes ― to feel cold, heat, pain

   tā, ka nejūt zemi zem kājām ― such that s/he doesn't feel the earth under his/her feet (= very fast)

2. to sense
3. to palp
4. to have a sensation

Conjugation

Derived terms

prefixed verbs:

• izjust
• pajust
• sajust

other derived terms:

• justies

Old French

Verb

just

1. third-person singular past historic of gesir

Romagnol

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʝi.ˈust/

Adjective

just m pl

1. masculine plural of jóst

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French juste, Latin jūstus, iūstus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʒust/

Adjective

just m or n (feminine singular justă, masculine plural juști, feminine and neuter plural juste)

1. just, correct

   Synonyms: drept, adevărat, echitabil

Declension

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jɵst/, [ʝɵsˑt]

Adverb

just (not comparable)

1. just (quite recently, only moments ago)

2. exactly, precisely
   1. (focus) particularly, in particular, specifically (compare similar usage in English "That's just the guy I saw" and the like)

Usage notes

Can be understood as English just except lacking the only sense. "Det är just lite regn" (It's precisely a little rain – likely nonsensical) can be understood as "It's just a little rain" if read as "It's just (precisely) a little rain," which is the natural reading in Swedish without the only sense.

Descendants

• → Finnish: just

See also

• bara (“only”) (for when English just means only – a sense Swedish just does not have)
• nättupp
• precis

References

• just in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• just in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• just in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)