1
as in worthless
having no usefulness
that broken watch you're wearing is junky
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cheap
of low quality
a junky coat that is sure to fall apart after one winter
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of junky
But those competitors have released junky TikTok clones and slop generators.
—
Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 28 Jan. 2026
Cheap gifts don’t have to be junky.
—Jessie Quinn, StyleCaster, 25 Nov. 2025
Just in the past two days, the spicy, junky stuff has come in a bit ( quantum , drones , upstart nuclear power ), helpfully.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 17 Oct. 2025
Walmart has the same problem as Amazon with junky, super-cheap listings, and even Newegg keeps listings up like this.
—Luke Larsen, Wired News, 28 Sep. 2025
The restaurant only has one Formica table in a junky storage area by the drink fountain.
—Bud Kennedy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 May 2025
Blomkamp can’t quite recapture the explosive propulsion of his debut feature, but Damon is a sturdy hero, and the director creates a convincingly junky future.
—Jason Bailey, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
Windows Search includes a bunch of extra graphics and junky newsfeed items and apps by default.
—Ars Technica, 19 Feb. 2025
But the visual jokes are dense and the look works for the setting and comedic ethos, reflecting the junky tourist-trap aesthetic that Mumolo and Wiig celebrate.
—Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 28 Jan. 2026
Cheap gifts don’t have to be junky.
—Jessie Quinn, StyleCaster, 25 Nov. 2025
Just in the past two days, the spicy, junky stuff has come in a bit ( quantum , drones , upstart nuclear power ), helpfully.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 17 Oct. 2025
Walmart has the same problem as Amazon with junky, super-cheap listings, and even Newegg keeps listings up like this.
—Luke Larsen, Wired News, 28 Sep. 2025
The restaurant only has one Formica table in a junky storage area by the drink fountain.
—Bud Kennedy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 May 2025
Blomkamp can’t quite recapture the explosive propulsion of his debut feature, but Damon is a sturdy hero, and the director creates a convincingly junky future.
—Jason Bailey, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
Windows Search includes a bunch of extra graphics and junky newsfeed items and apps by default.
—Ars Technica, 19 Feb. 2025
But the visual jokes are dense and the look works for the setting and comedic ethos, reflecting the junky tourist-trap aesthetic that Mumolo and Wiig celebrate.
—Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for junky
Adjective
-
The schemer makes out with bags of money, while the followers are left with nearly worthless assets.—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
12 Mar. 2026
-
The conventional newsgathering institutions have been worthless in getting to the bottom of anything, especially the billion-dollar why question.—
Joe Soucheray,
Twin Cities,
7 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Unlike rivals giving subscribers a choice of ad-free plans or cheaper tiers with ads, Amazon defaulted to ads for all subscribers to Prime, allowing an opt-out for an extra premium.—
Dade Hayes,
Deadline,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Rivian has been teasing the R2 for a while now, dangling the promise of a smaller, cheaper, more attainable version of its beloved R1S in front of adventure-hungry buyers who couldn’t quite stretch to the $77,000-plus sticker of its halo SUV.—
Kevin Sintumuang,
Outside,
13 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The empty gold frames on the walls of the Dutch Room at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston might be the most famous empty frames in the world.—
Kristina Rex,
CBS News,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Kabul said Pakistan hit two locations, including an empty security site and a drug rehabilitation center that sustained minor damage.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
17 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
As compiled by Gnostics, who consider the material world to be a fundamentally terrible place.—
Jay Martel,
New Yorker,
12 Mar. 2026
-
The Astros’ young second baseman, Jose Altuve, was making waves, Fisher remembered, yet the club still looked terrible.—
Evan Drellich,
New York Times,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
While youth suicide remains a leading cause of death, the youth suicide rate is down in Colorado, and the number of kids reporting poor mental health also dropped from 23% in 2023 to 14% in 2025.—
Shaun Boyd,
CBS News,
17 Mar. 2026
-
The launch came amid overcast skies and a weather forecast that was reduced to just a 75% chance for good conditions, according to Space Launch Delta 45’s weather squadron, which also noted a moderate risk for poor conditions at the booster landing site.—
Richard Tribou,
The Orlando Sentinel,
17 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Nobody paid much attention to weather forecasts because winter days were usually the same and, if different, just worse.—
Bradley Gitz,
Arkansas Online,
16 Mar. 2026
-
Jokic eagerly took advantage of bad transition defense, looking for long outlet passes to Braun and Bruce Brown.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
15 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
He was made to feel inferior because of his difficulties.—
Stuart Miller,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Sloppy, hasty automation, which replaces workers with inferior machines, is everyone’s loss.—
Lila Shroff,
The Atlantic,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
But it’s most often used in a more contemporary story as an ancestral home of an ancient, perhaps even rotten Establishment.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
12 Mar. 2026
-
False teeth had been used since Colonial years, with various attempts to replace rotten teeth that had been extracted to avoid illness.—
Scott Lafee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Junky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/junky. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
