junk

1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈjəŋk

Synonyms of junk next

a(1)

: old iron, glass, paper, or other waste that may be used again in some form

(2)

: secondhand, worn, or discarded articles

(3)

: clutter sense 1b

: something of poor quality : trash

: something of little meaning, worth, or significance

: pieces of old cable or cordage used especially to make gaskets, mats, swabs, or oakum

slang : narcotics

especially : heroin

: junk bond

: baseball pitches that break or are off-speed (such as curveballs or changeups)

slang : male genitalia

junk

2 of 3

verb

junked; junking; junks

transitive verb

: to get rid of as worthless : scrap

junk

3 of 3

noun (2)

: any of various ships of Chinese waters with bluff lines, a high poop and overhanging stem, little or no keel, high pole masts, and a deep rudder

Choose the Right Synonym for junk

discard, cast, shed, slough, scrap, junk mean to get rid of.

discard implies the letting go or throwing away of something that has become useless or superfluous though often not intrinsically valueless.

discard old clothes

cast, especially when used with off, away, or out, implies a forceful rejection or repudiation.

cast off her friends

shed and slough imply a throwing off of something both useless and encumbering and often suggest a consequent renewal of vitality or luster.

shed a bad habit

finally sloughed off the depression

scrap and junk imply throwing away or breaking up as worthless in existent form.

scrap all the old ways

would junk our educational system

Examples of junk in a Sentence

Verb We decided to junk our old computer and buy a new one. we'll have to junk this old car

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

And then the Republicans junked that plan and passed a map that was tilted wildly in their favor. —

Kyle Whitmire | Kwhitmire@al.com, al, 23 Aug. 2023 The cost to repair it was onerous, and Hilton had no option but to junk it. —

Susan Orlean, The New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2022 Pension costs have weighed on the city’s credit rating for years, which partly spurred Moody’s Investors Service to downgrade the city to junk in 2015. —

Shruti Singh, Bloomberg.com, 21 Oct. 2020 Place a slim chest of drawers or a demilune table right outside the entrance to your room to offer a spot to put away books or small accessories that would otherwise junk up your nightstand. —

Jenn Andrlik, House Beautiful, 20 Apr. 2023 But somebody cherry-picked a few passages from an 800-page training manual and now Ivey is more than willing to junk the state’s one educational success story to appease the anti-woke crusaders. —

Kyle Whitmire | , al, 25 Apr. 2023 On March 16, S&P cut First Republic Bank to junk on the risk of outflows. —

Peter Cohan, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2023 The restaurant was ordered to stop selling and junk these food items as well. —

Phillip Valys, Sun Sentinel, 21 Feb. 2023 In a revisionist mode, we might be tempted to junk Weber’s notion of a political savior, while holding onto his account of institutions. —

Corey Robin, The New Yorker, 12 Nov. 2020

Noun

While Berchtold had previously called for all-in pricing across the industry, as part of the FAIR Ticketing Reforms coalition, this effort was in tandem with President Biden’s larger push to cut down on junk fees. —

Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Sep. 2023 Twice a year, merchants swarmed several floors of the Garment District’s Hotel McAlpin to sell wares—denim and polyester, leathers and feathers, incense and necklaces, and no small amount of junk—to retail buyers. —

Sean Howe, Rolling Stone, 26 Aug. 2023 In February, Biden made tackling junk fees one of the focuses of his State of the Union address, a speech to Congress in which the president can outline his priorities for the coming year. —

Maryalice Parks, ABC News, 26 Aug. 2023 The idea has full White House support, with President Biden even mentioning junk fees in his State of the Union address. —

Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 24 Aug. 2023 Today’s private space ventures are set to increase the number of active satellites tenfold by 2030, even as experts warn about the persistence of space junk and increasing collision risk. —

Matthew King, The New Republic, 18 Aug. 2023 Police were attempting to tow a junk vehicle from the property when Jeremy McCracken, 38, exited his residence and began shooting at the officers and a tow truck driver. —

Molly Walsh | Mwalsh@cleveland.com, cleveland, 1 Aug. 2023 Learn more: Best travel insurance Phone calls during flights:Should they be allowed? Don't be a casualty:Hotels are returning fire in the 'junk fee' war What's the outlook for fall travel? —

Christopher Elliott, USA TODAY, 19 Aug. 2023 More than a dozen House Democrats around the country plan to hold events organized with help from the Progressive Change Institute to promote the administration’s effort to curb junk fees. —

Will Weissert, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Aug. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'junk.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.