1
2
: of or relating to juniors or the class of juniors at an educational institution
the junior prom
3
a
: lower in standing or rank
junior partners
b
: duplicating or suggesting on a smaller scale something typically large or powerful
a junior gale
1
a(1)
: a person who is younger than another
a man six years my junior
(2)
: a male child : son
(3)
: a young person
b
: a clothing size for women and girls with slight figures
2
a
: a student in the next-to-the-last year before graduating from an educational institution
b
: a person holding a lower position in a hierarchy of ranks
3
capitalized
: a member of a program of the Girl Scouts for girls in the third through sixth grades in school
Synonyms
Examples of junior in a Sentence
Adjective
She is a junior partner in the law firm.
junior advisers to the governor
Noun
They are my juniors in rank.
She's a junior at the state college.
Recent Examples on the Web
Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2024
One person Musselman can count on to return is junior Harrison Hornery.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2024
Los Alamitos junior speedster Devin Bragg is in the 100.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 8 Apr. 2024
After dropping out of high school in her junior year, Candy enrolled at the DeVern School of Cosmetology, in nearby Baldwin, New York.
—Hilton Als, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
No, the stars of the late-night portion of Saturday’s meet were Carlsbad junior Morgan Herbst and Mt. Miguel sophomore Brandon Arrington.
—Steve Brand, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2024
During my junior year, the Columbine shooting took place, far away.
—Clare Beams, Peoplemag, 7 Apr. 2024
Liron Petrushka was a former soccer player for the Hapoel Ramat Gan Givatayim team, according to the Times of Israel, and his son Jordan had previously played for Israel's junior team.
—Emily Deletter, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2024
The defense also implemented a new package, with junior Nico Davillier and Spence.
—Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 27 Mar. 2024
Seyward Darby, Longreads, 9 Apr. 2024
Sophie Gordon, a 16-year-old junior at Myers Park High School in Charlotte, died in the crash.
—Jeff A. Chamer, Charlotte Observer, 9 Apr. 2024
No one has been better than Seth Hernandez of Corona, a junior who’s a two-way player.
—Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2024
Brandon Gorski, a junior at Mater Dei, likely will need his county-leading clearance of 6-feet-8 in the high jump to get a medal in the event at Arcadia.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 8 Apr. 2024
Mir, then a junior, didn't just go on to create a workshop to teach middle schoolers about the fundamentals of journalism.
—Bridget Fogarty, Journal Sentinel, 8 Apr. 2024
Jack Levin, a junior at La Jolla Country Day School, will be accepting the Local Peacemaker Award on behalf of the Lucky Ducklings.
—Steven P. Dinkin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2024
Herrera, a junior at Simmons University in Boston, plans to take time off from classes to spend the day with her family and go to a local mosque for a special prayer that is only said during an eclipse.
—Rachel Treisman, NPR, 7 Apr. 2024
Added her classmate Minerva Pineda-Allen, a junior.
—Christina Larson, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
Adjective
Thinking that far ahead was difficult for Moriarty — let alone for his junior high students.
—Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2024
One person Musselman can count on to return is junior Harrison Hornery.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2024
Los Alamitos junior speedster Devin Bragg is in the 100.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 8 Apr. 2024
After dropping out of high school in her junior year, Candy enrolled at the DeVern School of Cosmetology, in nearby Baldwin, New York.
—Hilton Als, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
No, the stars of the late-night portion of Saturday’s meet were Carlsbad junior Morgan Herbst and Mt. Miguel sophomore Brandon Arrington.
—Steve Brand, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2024
During my junior year, the Columbine shooting took place, far away.
—Clare Beams, Peoplemag, 7 Apr. 2024
Liron Petrushka was a former soccer player for the Hapoel Ramat Gan Givatayim team, according to the Times of Israel, and his son Jordan had previously played for Israel's junior team.
—Emily Deletter, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2024
The defense also implemented a new package, with junior Nico Davillier and Spence.
—Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 27 Mar. 2024
Noun
When a right-wing website called 1819 News exposed his deepest secrets, his life wasn’t the only thing that was destroyed:
When the story hit the next morning, Bubba’s son Carter, a junior at Auburn, was still asleep.
—Seyward Darby, Longreads, 9 Apr. 2024
Sophie Gordon, a 16-year-old junior at Myers Park High School in Charlotte, died in the crash.
—Jeff A. Chamer, Charlotte Observer, 9 Apr. 2024
No one has been better than Seth Hernandez of Corona, a junior who’s a two-way player.
—Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2024
Brandon Gorski, a junior at Mater Dei, likely will need his county-leading clearance of 6-feet-8 in the high jump to get a medal in the event at Arcadia.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 8 Apr. 2024
Mir, then a junior, didn't just go on to create a workshop to teach middle schoolers about the fundamentals of journalism.
—Bridget Fogarty, Journal Sentinel, 8 Apr. 2024
Jack Levin, a junior at La Jolla Country Day School, will be accepting the Local Peacemaker Award on behalf of the Lucky Ducklings.
—Steven P. Dinkin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2024
Herrera, a junior at Simmons University in Boston, plans to take time off from classes to spend the day with her family and go to a local mosque for a special prayer that is only said during an eclipse.
—Rachel Treisman, NPR, 7 Apr. 2024
Added her classmate Minerva Pineda-Allen, a junior.
—Christina Larson, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'junior.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Junior.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/junior. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
junior
1 of 2 adjective
ju·nior
ˈjün-yər 
1
a
: being the younger one
—used chiefly to distinguish a son with the same given name as his father
b
: designed for young teenagers
2
: lower in standing or rank
junior partner
3
: of or relating to juniors in a school
junior
2 of 2 noun1
: a person who is younger or of lower rank than another
2
: a student in the next-to-last year in a high school, college, or university
Legal Definition
junior
adjective
ju·nior
ˈjü-nyər
: of lower standing or rank
a junior lienholder
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