justify
VerbOpen English WordNet
Verb (3)justified, justifies, justifying
- show to be right by providing justification or proof“vindicate a claim”Synonyms: vindicateMore general uphold, maintainMore specific warrant, excuse, legitimate
- (used of God) declare innocent; absolve from the penalty of sinMore general absolve, free
- adjust the spaces between words“justify the margins”More general adjust, set
What does it mean? Question 1 of today’s quiz
Translations
Verb provide an acceptable explanation
- Spanish
- justificar
- French
- justifier
- German
- rechtfertigen
- Italian
- giustificare
- Portuguese
- justificar
- Turkish
- haklı göstermek
- Russian
- опра́вдывать oprávdyvatʹ
- Arabic
- بَرَّرَ barrara
- Chinese
- 辩护 biànhù
- Japanese
- 正当化する seitōka suru
15 more languages
- Dutch
- rechtvaardigen
- Polish
- uzasadniać
- Swedish
- rättfärdiga
- Greek
- δικαιολογώ dikaiologó
- Vietnamese
- biện minh
- Hungarian
- indokol
- Portuguese (PT)
- justificar
- Chinese (Trad.)
- 聲辯 shēngbiàn
- Catalan
- justificar
- Czech
- ospravedlnit
- Danish
- retfærdiggøre
- Finnish
- perustella
- Norwegian
- begrunne
- Romanian
- justifica
- Welsh
- cyfiawnhau
The main translation for each meaning, from the langtolang.com multilingual dictionary. Each word links to its full entry there.
Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Origin: F. justifier, L. justificare; justus just + -ficare (in comp.) to make. See Just, adjective, and -fy.
1. To prove or show to be just; to vindicate; to maintain or defend as conformable to law, right, justice, propriety, or duty.
That to the height of this great argument I may assert eternal providence, And justify the ways of God to men.— John Milton
Unless the oppression is so extreme as to justify revolution, it would not justify the evil of breaking up a government.— Edward Everett
2. To pronounce free from guilt or blame; to declare or prove to have done that which is just, right, proper, etc.; to absolve; to exonerate; to clear.
I can not justify whom the law condemns.— William Shakespeare
3. Theology To treat as if righteous and just; to pardon; to exculpate; to absolve.
By him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.— Acts xiii. 39.
4. To prove; to ratify; to confirm. obsolete William Shakespeare
5. Printing To make even or true, as lines of type, by proper spacing; to align (text) at the left (left justify) or right (right justify) margins of a column or page, or at both margins; to adjust, as type. See Justification, 4.
6. Law (a) To show (a person) to have had a sufficient legal reason for an act that has been made the subject of a charge or accusation. (b) To qualify (one's self) as a surety by taking oath to the ownership of sufficient property.
The production of bail in court, who there justify themselves against the exception of the plaintiff.— Bouvier's Law Dict.
Synonyms: To defend; maintain; vindicate; excuse; exculpate; absolve; exonerate.
1. Printing To form an even surface or true line with something else; to fit exactly.
2. Law To take oath to the ownership of property sufficient to qualify one's self as bail or surety.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54 · with additions: 1913 supplement