junket

1 of 2

noun

jun·​ket ˈjəŋ-kət How to pronounce junket (audio)
1
a
: trip, journey: such as
(1)
: a trip made by an official at public expense
(2)
: a promotional trip made at another's expense
a film's press junket
b
: a festive social affair
2
: a dessert of sweetened flavored milk set with rennet

junket

2 of 2

verb

junketed; junketing; junkets

intransitive verb

1
: to go on a junket
2
junketeer noun
or junketer

Did you know?

Junket has traveled a long road, and its journey began with a basket made of rushes—that is, marsh plants commonly used in weaving and basketwork. The Latin word for "rush" is juncus, which English borrowed and adapted into various forms until settling on junket. That word was used in English to name not just the plant and the baskets made from the plant, but also a type of cream cheese made in rush baskets. Since at least the 15th century, the word has named a variety of comestibles, ranging from curds and cream to sweet confections. (Junket even today also names a dessert.) By the 16th century, junket had come to mean "banquet" or "feast" as well. Apparently, traveling must have been involved to reach some junkets because eventually the term broadened to apply to pleasure outings or trips, whether or not food was the focus. Today, the word usually refers either to a trip made by a government official and paid for by the public, or to a free trip by a member of the press to a place where something, such as a new movie, is being promoted.

Examples of junket in a Sentence

Noun The senator has been criticized for expensive junkets to foreign countries. took a junket to the city for some sightseeing and shopping Verb a lobbyist who regularly junkets politicians who are friendly toward the oil industry
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The Sideways star instead offered his illustrious peers a forum to chop it up for an hour or so about subjects that rarely come up during press junkets. Chris Gardner, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Mar. 2024 Gaming operators in Macau—the only place in Greater China where casino gambling is legal—are still recovering from Beijing’s clampdown on VIP junkets, which until four years ago contributed roughly half of Macau’s total gaming revenue. John Kang, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 Besides the screenings, the Rendez-Vous will also organize the second edition of the Export Day, a conference dedicated to international sales business for French movies, as well as junkets with directors, actors and showrunners on Jan 20-23 at the Hôtel du Collectionneur. Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 9 Jan. 2024 Anderson himself called Gerwig on a Friday, and that Sunday, the TCM team was at the Barbie junket shooting her segments, which aired the weekend of the film's release. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 7 Aug. 2023 Coming from Hollywood, where many actors lament the rigors of one-day press junkets, the players’ accessibility seemed almost excessive. Amy Kaufman, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2024 Lured to the Washington, D.C., area on the pretense of a training junket, he was arrested and charged with federal drug crimes before agreeing to cooperate, officials said. Tim Golden, ProPublica, 31 Jan. 2024 Last night at Palm Springs International Film Festival, normal service resumed as awards season 2024’s leading ladies–Emma Stone, Carey Mulligan, Margot Robbie and Lily Gladstone–buckled in for weeks’ worth of ceremonies, parties and press junkets. Alice Newbold, Vogue, 5 Jan. 2024 These junkets allowed wealthy Chinese to buy casino chips with renminbi, gamble some of them on baccarat or roulette and then convert the rest into dollars. Joy Dong, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023
Verb
The studio is junketing the film for international press from June 18-19, which means that most of its interviews will be banked if the talks with SAG-AFTRA falter. Matt Donnelly, Variety, 13 June 2023 Spielberg, who is by far the film’s biggest star, also limited his press presence almost exclusively to junket interviews. Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 13 Dec. 2021

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

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English ioncate, ultimately from Vulgar Latin *juncata, from Latin juncus rush

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1786, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Verb

1607, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of junket was in 1607

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Dictionary Entries Near junket

Cite this Entry

“Junket.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/junket. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

junket

1 of 2 noun
jun·​ket ˈjəŋ-kət How to pronounce junket (audio)
1
: a dessert of sweetened flavored milk set in a jelly
2
: trip entry 1 sense 2a
especially : a trip made by an official at public expense

junket

2 of 2 verb
1
2
: to go on a junket

More from Merriam-Webster on junket

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