jus ‧ ti ‧ fi ‧ ca ‧ tion AC /ˌdʒʌstəfəˈkeɪʃ ə n, ˌdʒʌstɪfəˈkeɪʃ ə n/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable and countable]
[ Word Family: adjective : ↑ justifiable ≠ ↑ unjustifiable , ↑ justified ≠ ↑ unjustified ; verb : ↑ justify ; noun : ↑ justification ; adverb : ↑ justifiably ≠ ↑ unjustifiably ]
1 . a good and acceptable reason for doing something
justification for (doing) something
There is no justification for holding her in jail.
Hoggart felt, with some justification, that his colleagues had let him down.
2 . in justification (of somebody/something) in order to explain why an idea or action is right:
He made a speech in justification of his actions.
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THESAURUS
▪ reason why something happens, or why someone does something:
What was the reason for the delay?
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I don’t know the reason why he left his last job.
▪ explanation a set of reasons that helps you to understand why something happens, especially when it seems difficult to understand:
There are various possible explanations for climate change.
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Is there any explanation for his behavior?
▪ motive a reason that makes someone decide to do something – often used about crimes:
Police say that there is no obvious motive for the attack.
▪ justification a good reason for doing something that seems wrong:
There is never any justification for torture or abuse.
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They try to use the situation in the Middle East as a justification for killing innocent civilians.
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There’s no justification for this type of behaviour.
▪ grounds a reason that makes it right or fair to do something, especially according to legal, official, or moral rules:
The court will decide if she has grounds for divorce.
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They claim the war is justified on moral grounds (=because of moral reasons) .
▪ basis the main ideas or reasons on which something is based:
The doctor makes his decisions purely on the basis of clinical observation.
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What do you think is the basis for this advice?
▪ rationale /ˌræʃəˈnɑːl $ -ˈnæl/ formal a set of reasons that are used to explain why someone does something in a particular way:
the rationale behind the government’s economic reforms
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This chapter explains the nature of yearly plans, and provides a rationale for their use.