Meaning & use
junior
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivebefore a noun
Lower in rank, age, or experience compared to others in the same field.
Grammar: Often used before a noun: junior staff, junior position. Can also follow a name to indicate a son with the same name.
Patterns
- junior to someone
- junior member
She started as a junior accountant and worked her way up.
The junior team plays before the senior team.
He is junior to me, so I have more responsibilities.
nouncountableAmerican
A student in the third year of a four-year high school or college program in the US.
Grammar: In the US, a junior is in the third year; in the UK, 'junior' often refers to a younger student.
Patterns
- a high school junior
- a college junior
My sister is a junior at the University of Michigan.
As a junior, he is already thinking about college applications.
The juniors and seniors have different exam schedules.
adjectiveafter a verbAmerican
Used after a name to show that a son has the same name as his father.
Grammar: Written after the full name, often abbreviated as Jr.: John Smith Jr.
Patterns
- John Smith junior
Martin Luther King Junior was a famous civil rights leader.
He is named after his father and uses 'junior' after his name.
Word forms
| plural | juniors |
|---|
Common combinations
- junior high school
- She teaches at the local junior high school.
- junior varsity
- He plays on the junior varsity basketball team.
- junior partner
- The junior partner handles smaller cases.
- junior year
- During my junior year, I studied abroad.
Synonyms and how they differ
- subordinate
- More formal and often used in business contexts; junior can also refer to age or school year.
- lower-ranking
- Describes position in a hierarchy; junior is broader and can refer to experience or age.
Opposites
Word family
- juniority noun
- The state of being junior; less common than seniority.
Commonly confused: junior or senior?
junior vs senior
Senior means higher in rank or older; junior is the opposite. In US schools, a senior is in the fourth year.
Practice
In the US, a student in the third year of high school is called a ___.
Choose one answer.
A junior is in the third year. A freshman is first year, a sophomore is second year, and a senior is fourth year.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “junior”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.