journal

1 of 2

noun

jour·​nal ˈjər-nᵊl 

1

a

: a daily newspaper

—usually used in titles

The Wall Street Journal

b

: a periodical dealing especially with matters of current interest

an academic journal

—often used in titles

The Journal of the American Medical Association

2

a

: a record of experiences, ideas, or reflections kept regularly for private use : diary

b

: a record of current transactions

especially : a book of original entry in double-entry bookkeeping

c

: an account of day-to-day events

d

: a record of transactions kept by a deliberative or legislative body

e

: log sense 3

f

: log sense 4

3

: the part of a rotating shaft, axle, roll, or spindle that turns in a bearing

journal

2 of 2

verb

journaled; journaling; journals

transitive + intransitive

: to keep a personal journal : to enter or record daily thoughts, experiences, etc., in a journal

As a kid, I journaled about everything from boys to bad haircuts.

—Redbook

The principal at the school says since students began journaling last year, poor behavior reports have dropped 40 percent.

—Stephanie Stahl

The students engaged in several process discussions to reflect on their service-learning projects, and they journaled their reactions.

—Roeper Review

journaler noun

plural journalers

You don't have to be a writer to be a journaler, but journal keeping will make you a writer anyway.

—Robert Moss

journaling

ˈjər-nᵊl-iŋ 

noun

Change your attitude about being awake at night. Savor this time alone for journaling or personal reflection.

—Self Healing

First on the agenda for this crew: a process dieticians call journaling, which involves jotting down every single thing eaten for several days …

—Family Circle

Synonyms

Noun

• newspaper
• periodical
• magazine
• book

Examples of journal in a Sentence

Noun

I've been keeping a journal for several years.

She records her dreams in a journal.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The results were published in the journal Contraception. —Lisa Falco, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025

Published in the journal Microbial Cell, the new study sheds new light on caffeine's surprising ability to influence how our cells respond to stress and energy shortages, factors long associated with ageing and disease. —Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 June 2025

Verb

One helpful way to do this is to journal or reflect on the day’s chapters to get a sense of what your day already looks like, and then break it down into new, meaningful chapters on paper. —Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025

Take time to be self-aware and journal your progress in your job. —Rachel Wells, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, service book containing the day hours, from Anglo-French jurnal, from jurnal, adjective, daily, from Latin diurnalis, from diurnus of the day, from dies day — more at deity

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2b

Verb

1803, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing journal

• journal box

Rhymes for journal

• colonel
• kernel
• sternal
• vernal
• diurnal
• eternal
• external
• fraternal
• infernal
• internal
• maternal
• nocturnal

Kids Definition

journal

noun

jour·​nal ˈjərn-ᵊl 

1

a

: a brief account of daily events : diary

b

: a record of the happenings of a conference or a legislative body

2

a

: a daily newspaper

b

: a magazine that reports on things of special interest to a particular group

Etymology

Noun

Middle English journal "a religious service book containing the day hours," from early French jurnal (same meaning), from jurnal (adjective) "daily," derived from Latin diurnus "of the day, daily," from dies "day" — related to diary, journey see Word History at journey