junior

See also: Junior and júnior

English

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *h₂ey-

Proto-Indo-European *-u

Proto-Indo-European *h₂óyu

Proto-Indo-European *-Hō

Proto-Indo-European *h₂yéwHō

Proto-Italic *juwō

Latin iuvenis

Latin iūniorbor.

English junior

Borrowed from Latin junior, a contraction of iuvenior (“younger”) which is the comparative of iuvenis (“young”); see juvenile.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒuːniə/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (General American, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒuniɚ/

  • Audio (Texas):

    (file)

  • Audio (Connecticut):

    (file)

• (Australia, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒʉːniə/
• Rhymes: -uːniə(ɹ)
• Hyphenation: ju‧nior

Adjective

junior (not generally comparable, comparative more junior, superlative most junior)

1. (comparable) Low in rank; having a subordinate role, job, or situation.

   He uses the leverage of seniority with the more junior employees.

2. (not comparable, often preceded by a possessive adjective or a possessive form of a noun) Younger.
   • 2003, Karen Frisch, Creating Junior Genealogists, →ISBN:

     Far less likely to intimidate your junior genealogist is the Internet, with its databases, message and bulletin boards, online collections, and more. Now is also the time to introduce your children to older relatives, who can be valuable resources and provide precious information.

   • 2010, Julie Cross, Humor in Contemporary Junior Literature, →ISBN, page 1:

     Humorous books for junior readers are often ignored by the critical community, due, in part, to what Milner Davis describes as a “conventional bias against comic genres” (1996: 101), and I consider this a serious oversight within the field of children's literature.

   • 2011, Julian Barnes, Knowing French (Storycuts), →ISBN:

     There she is: Lady Margaret Hall, eight years junior to me, exhibitioner where I was top scholar, and reading French. (Not veterinary science.)

   • 2012, Junior Golf in Pictures: The Junior Golfer's Handbook, →ISBN:

     A handbook for junior golfers covering a wide range of golfing instruction and information with over 250 photographs of juniors learning, playing, practicing and enjoying the game of golf.

   • 2013, Krishna Mohan Mishra, Me and Medicine, →ISBN, page 111:

     Instead of going to the unit I walked in the opposite direction towards the medicine lecture room with various thoughts going through my mind — most of them were positive as this was a great opportunity to practise what I had learnt so far and should have a good impact on students who were 3–4 years junior to me and not known to me.

3. (not comparable) Belonging to a younger person, or an earlier time of life.
   • 1642, [Thomas Browne], “(please specify the page)”, in Religio Medici, London: […] Andrew Crooke, →OCLC:

     Though our first Studies and junior Endeavours may stile us Peripateticks, Stoicks, or Academicks, yet I perceive the wisest Heads prove at last, almost all Scepticks […]

4. (not comparable, chiefly US) Of or pertaining to a third academic year in a four-year high school (eleventh grade) or university.
5. (not comparable, chiefly UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) Of or pertaining to the latter half of primary school education.

   Coordinate term: infant

   • 2018 October 3, Maurice Galton, Helen Patrick, Curriculum Provision in the Small Primary School, Routledge, →ISBN:

     Only about half of the schools had a single closing time, while the others organized different times for their infant and junior children.

6. (sports, US, Canada) Of or pertaining to a league or competition limited to players below a certain age or level of experience.

   junior hockey

7. (card games) Synonym of younger.
   • 1923, Ernest Bramah [pseudonym; Ernest Brammah Smith], “(please specify the page)”, in The Eyes of Max Carrados, London: Grant Richards, →OCLC:

     "Not bad for the junior hand," commented Crediton.

Alternative forms

• juniour (obsolete)

Derived terms

• junior bridesmaid
• junior college
• junior doctor
• junior high
• junior higher
• junior high school
• junior infant
• junioritis
• juniority
• junior jump
• junior miner
• junior minister
• junior miss
• juniormost
• juniorness
• junior right
• junior school
• juniorship
• junior soldier
• junior soph
• junior synonym
• junior varsity
• juvenile
• lieutenant junior grade
• major junior
• prejunior
• rear admiral junior grade
• rejuvenate
• subjunior
• young
• youth

Translations

younger

• Armenian: կրտսեր (hy) (krtser)
• Belarusian: мало́дшы (malódšy)
• Bulgarian: младши (mladši), по-млад (po-mlad)
• Czech: mladší (cs)
• Finnish: nuorempi (fi)
• French: junior (fr), jeune (fr)
• Galician: máis novo m
• Georgian: უმცროსი (umcrosi)
• German: jünger (de)
• Hindi: कनिष्ठ (hi) (kaniṣṭh)
• Hungarian: ifjabb (hu)
• Italian: giovane (it)
• Japanese: 年下の (ja) (とししたの, toshishita no)
• Kazakh: кіші (kiši)
• Korean: 후배(後輩)의 (hubae-ui)
• Kyrgyz: кичи (kici), кичүү (kicüü)
• Latin: iūnior
• Māori: muringa
• Persian: کهتر (fa) (kehtar)
• Polish: młodszy (pl)
• Portuguese: mais novo/jovem
• Russian: мла́дший (ru) (mládšij)
• Slovak: mladší
• Slovene: mlajši (sl)
• Spanish: júnior (es), junior
• Tagalog: kubtaunan (academic)
• Ukrainian: моло́дший (molódšyj)

Noun

junior (countable and uncountable, plural juniors)

1. (countable) A younger person.

   Antonym: senior

   four years his junior

   • 1922, Angela Brazil, Monitress Merle:

     Miss Mitchell would certainly be most relieved to have a monitress who was capable of organising the juniors at games.

   • 1939, P. G. Wodehouse, Uncle Fred in the Springtime:

     The last man I met who was at school with me, though some years my junior, had a long white beard and no teeth.

2. A name suffix used after a son's name when his father has the same name (abbreviations: Jnr., Jr., Jun.).
3. (uncountable) A clothing size for girls or women.

   Coordinate terms: junior miss, misses

4. (countable, chiefly US, Philippines) A third-year student at a high school or university.
5. (countable, chiefly UK, Ireland, Commonwealth) A student in a junior school or the second part of a primary school.

   Coordinate term: infant

   • 2013 December 19, Michelle MacGrath, The Art of Peaceful Teaching in the Primary School: Improving Behaviour and Preserving Motivation, Routledge, →ISBN:

     My son is now a junior at another, bigger school; but our hopes for his schooling have really remained the same. Of course, we want him to be able to read and keep up at maths but the fact that he is still so enthusiastic about his school and his teacher and his classmates

6. (countable, law) A junior barrister.

Translations

someone younger than someone else

• Armenian: կրտսեր (hy) (krtser)
• Bulgarian: младши (mladši)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 晚輩 / 晚辈 (zh) (wǎnbèi), 後輩 / 后辈 (zh) (hòubèi)

• Dutch: jongerejaars m or f
• Finnish: nuorempi (fi)
• Galician: mozo (gl) m
• Georgian: უმცროსი (umcrosi)
• Hindi: कनिष्ठ (hi) (kaniṣṭh)
• Japanese: 後輩 (ja) (こうはい, kōhai), 年下 (ja) (としした, toshishita)
• Korean: 후배(後輩) (ko) (hubae)
• Polish: junior (pl) m
• Russian: мла́дший (ru) m (mládšij)
• Spanish: júnior (es) m or f, junior m or f
• Swedish: den yngre c, junior (sv) c
• Tatar: яшь (tt) (yäş), кече (keçe)

Verb

junior (third-person singular simple present juniors, present participle junioring, simple past and past participle juniored)

1. (ambitransitive) To work in a junior role (on something).
   • 2013, Mick Lowe, Conspiracy of Brothers, page 325:

     Greenspan had juniored the Demeter murder trial with defence lawyer Joe Pomerant and was, by 1980, well on his way to becoming the most renowned criminal lawyer in Canada.

   • 2016, Rainier George Weiner, Living on Lifesavers:

     Stephens brought with him a general manager, Bob Rodgers. Bob […] never let adversity faze him. He was always in charge. Mr. Rodgers could dance just enough to do some junioring, but acted primarily as a sales manager.

2. (transitive) To have juniors (more advanced students) assist in instructing (beginners).
   • 2006, Jim and Leann Rathbone, James Mitose and the Path of Kenpo

     The technique of "junioring" beginners and the first five lesson plan and private lessons were adaptations developed at that time. They are credited with the Americanization of Karate as a business as well as a martial art.

Further reading

• “junior”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Dutch

Etymology

From Latin junior.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

junior m (plural junioren or juniors, diminutive junioortje n)

1. junior (younger or lower-ranked person, for example in job titles)

Coordinate terms

• medior
• senior

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin juniorem; Doublet of geindre. Cf. also the inherited Old French oblique case gignor.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʒy.njɔʁ/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

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• Audio (France (Somain)):

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Noun

junior m or f by sense (plural juniors)

1. (sports) junior

Derived terms

• junior majeur

Adjective

junior (plural juniors)

1. junior (all senses)

See also

• juveigneur

Further reading

• “junior”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

Hungarian

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin iunior (“younger”), from Latin iuvenis (“young”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈjunijor]
• Hyphenation: ju‧ni‧or
• Rhymes: -or

Noun

junior

1. (sports) junior

   Synonym: ifjúsági

Declension

Inflection (stem in -o-, back harmony)

	singular	plural
nominative	junior	juniorok
accusative	juniort	juniorokat
dative	juniornak	junioroknak
instrumental	juniorral	juniorokkal
causal-final	juniorért	juniorokért
translative	juniorrá	juniorokká
terminative	juniorig	juniorokig
essive-formal	juniorként	juniorokként
essive-modal	—	—
inessive	juniorban	juniorokban
superessive	junioron	juniorokon
adessive	juniornál	junioroknál
illative	juniorba	juniorokba
sublative	juniorra	juniorokra
allative	juniorhoz	juniorokhoz
elative	juniorból	juniorokból
delative	juniorról	juniorokról
ablative	juniortól	junioroktól
non-attributive possessive – singular	junioré	junioroké
non-attributive possessive – plural	junioréi	juniorokéi

Further reading

• junior in Géza Bárczi, László Országh, et al., editors, A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára [The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (ÉrtSz.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN.

Indonesian

Alternative forms

• yunior

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin junior, iūnior.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /d͡ʒuˈniɔr/ [d͡ʒuˈni.ɔr]
• Syllabification: ju‧ni‧or

Adjective

junior (comparative lebih junior, superlative paling junior)

1. junior (having a subordinate role, job, or situation)
2. junior (belonging to a younger person, or an earlier time of life)

Noun

junior (plural junior-junior)

1. junior
2. underclassman

Synonyms

(noun):

• adik kelas
• adik tingkat
• adik tingkatan
• kohai

Antonyms

• senior

Further reading

• “junior”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Latin

Adjective

jūnior (comparative, neuter jūnius); third declension

1. comparative degree of juvenis

Declension

Third-declension comparative adjective.

	singular			plural
	masc./fem.	neuter		masc./fem.	neuter
nominative	jūnior	jūnius		jūniōrēs	jūniōra
genitive	jūniōris			jūniōrum
dative	jūniōrī			jūniōribus
accusative	jūniōrem	jūnius		jūniōrēs jūniōrīs	jūniōra
ablative	jūniōre jūniōrī			jūniōribus
vocative	jūnior	jūnius		jūniōrēs	jūniōra

References

• “junior”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press

Polish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *h₂ey-

Proto-Indo-European *-u

Proto-Indo-European *h₂óyu

Proto-Indo-European *-Hō

Proto-Indo-European *h₂yéwHō

Proto-Italic *juwō

Latin iuvenis

Latin iūniorlbor.

Polish junior

Learned borrowing from Latin iūnior.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈju.ɲɔr/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uɲɔr
• Syllabification: ju‧nior

Noun

junior m pers (female equivalent juniorka)

1. (humorous, literary) junior (youngest member of the family by age)

   Antonyms: nestor, senior

2. junior (athlete who is under the age recommended for a sport, usually nineteen years of age)

   Antonym: senior

   Hypernym: sportowiec

Noun

junior m pers

1. Jr. (title used after a son's name when his father has the same name)

   Antonym: senior

Declension

Declension of junior

	singular	plural
nominative	junior	juniorzy, juniory1
genitive	juniora	juniorów
dative	juniorowi	juniorom
accusative	juniora	juniorów
instrumental	juniorem	juniorami
locative	juniorze	juniorach
vocative	juniorze	juniorzy

¹Deprecative.

Derived terms

adjectives

• juniorski

nouns

• juniorek

Further reading

• “junior”, in Wielki słownik języka polskiego‎^[1] (in Polish), Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• “junior”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎^[2] (in Polish)
• junior in PWN's encyclopedia

Romanian

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *h₂ey-

Proto-Indo-European *-u

Proto-Indo-European *h₂óyu

Proto-Indo-European *-Hō

Proto-Indo-European *h₂yéwHō

Proto-Italic *juwō

Latin iuvenis

Latin iūniorbor.

French juniorbor.

▲

Latin iūniorlbor.

Romanian junior

Borrowed from French junior, or a learned borrowing from Latin iūnior.

Adjective

junior m or n (feminine singular junioră, masculine plural juniori, feminine/neuter plural juniore)

1. junior

Declension

Declension of junior

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative- accusative	indefinite	junior		junioră	juniori	juniore
	definite	juniorul		juniora	juniorii	juniorele
genitive- dative	indefinite	junior		juniore	juniori	juniore
	definite	juniorului		juniorei	juniorilor	juniorelor

Noun

junior m (plural juniori)

1. junior

Declension

	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	junior	juniorul	juniori	juniorii
genitive-dative	junior	juniorului	juniori	juniorilor
vocative	juniorule		juniorilor

Spanish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *h₂ey-

Proto-Indo-European *-u

Proto-Indo-European *h₂óyu

Proto-Indo-European *-Hō

Proto-Indo-European *h₂yéwHō

Proto-Italic *juwō

Latin iuvenis

Latin iūniorbor.

English juniorbor.

Spanish junior

Borrowed from English junior.

Adjective

junior m or f (masculine and feminine plural juniors)

1. alternative form of júnior

   Alternative form: yúnior

   Antonym: senior

Unadapted

According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.

Further reading

• “junior”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025
• Seco, Manuel; Andrés, Olimpia; Ramos, Gabino (2023), “junior”, in Diccionario del español actual [Dictionary of Current Spanish] (in Spanish), third digital edition, Fundación BBVA
• “junior”, in Diccionario panhispánico de dudas [Pan-Hispanic Dictionary of Doubts] (in Spanish), 2nd edition, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española]; Association of Academies of the Spanish Language [Spanish: Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española], 2023, →ISBN

Swedish

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin junior.

Adjective

junior (comparative mer junior, superlative mest junior)

1. junior

Declension

Inflection of junior

Indefinite	positive	comparative	superlative1
common singular	junior	mer junior	mest junior
neuter singular	juniort	mer juniort	mest juniort
plural	juniora	mer juniora	mest juniora
masculine plural2	juniore	mer juniora	mest juniora
Definite	positive	comparative	superlative
masculine singular3	juniore	mer juniore	mest juniore
all	juniora	mer juniora	mest juniora

¹ The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative.
² Dated or archaic.
³ Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.

Noun

junior c

1. (sports) junior (athlete in the younger age groups)

   Antonyms: senior, oldboy

Usage notes

It varies from sport to sport, but typically the threshold is around 18 years of age.

Declension

Declension of junior

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	junior	juniors
	definite	junioren	juniorens
plural	indefinite	juniorer	juniorers
	definite	juniorerna	juniorernas

Derived terms

• juniorelit
• juniorklass
• juniorlag
• juniorlandskamp
• juniorlandslag
• juniormatch
• juniormästare
• juniormästerskap
• juniorspelare
• juniortränare
• juniortävling
• juniorvärldsmästare

Further reading

• “junior”, in Svenska Akademiens ordböcker [Dictionaries of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)