justified

adjective

jus·​ti·​fied ˈjə-stə-ˌfīd 

1

: having or shown to have a just, right, or reasonable basis

a justified punishment

a justified reputation for toughness

Such work calls for a combination of training and talent that few can lay justified claim to …

—Bernard Knox

2

typography

a

: aligned evenly at the margin

a justified line of text

In justified composition, where the type must be flush with both the left and right margins, the machine will automatically expand or condense the word space or hyphenate end-of-line words to fill up the line measure.

—Ray Blair and Thomas M. Destree

b

: made even by spacing lines of text

a document with justified margins

Synonyms

• commonsense
• commonsensible
• commonsensical
• firm
• good
• hard
• informed
• just
• levelheaded
• logical
• rational
• reasonable
• reasoned
• sensible
• sober
• solid
• valid
• well-founded

Examples of justified in a Sentence

in a well-justified ruling the court voted unanimously to overturn the law

the use of force to capture the armed fugitive was fully justified

Recent Examples on the Web

But, like it or not, a narrative has taken shape, with many across the internet hailing Mangione — yet to be extradited to New York on the murder change, let alone tried and convicted for it — as a justified vigilante. —Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 13 Dec. 2024

For others, Mangione is an expression of the depth of righteous anger present in American life right now, a symbol of justified violence. —Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 12 Dec. 2024

This is understandable and justified but susceptible to financial exploitation. —Richard Menger Md Mpa, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024

Stan Kasten spent that same time running a Guggenheim business model that restored the fan experience at baseball’s largest stadium, selling record numbers of tickets while enduring much justified criticism to score big TV money. —Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1586, in the meaning defined at sense 1