Justification

How to spell justification

13 letters · 5 syllables

How to pronounce justification

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does justification mean?

1. nounA reason, explanation, or set of grounds offered to show that an action or belief is right or acceptable.
2. nounThe adjustment of spacing in printed or typed text so that the lines align evenly along both margins.

Justification in a sentence

• The manager demanded a clear justification for the extra spending.

• The designer set the paragraph to full justification so both edges lined up.

• There was no justification for cancelling the contract without warning.

• Left justification left a ragged edge on the right side of the column.

Where does justification come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin justificare, meaning 'to make right' or 'to do justice to', which was assembled from justus, meaning 'just, lawful, righteous', and facere, the everyday Latin verb 'to make or do'. The abstract noun justificatio described the act of setting something right or proving it just. English took the word from Old French in the late 1300s, and one of its earliest uses was strongly theological, referring to the way a person is declared righteous before God. Over time the everyday sense broadened to mean any reason or grounds offered to defend an action or belief. The same justus root survives in the familiar words 'justice' and 'just', which is a useful reminder that the spelling keeps that 'just' chunk intact before the -ification ending.

How the word is built

• just- (from Latin justus: right, lawful)
• -ific- (from facere: to make)
• -ation (noun of action)