ˈjəŋ(k)chə(r), -(k)shə(r) noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin junctura, from junctus (past participle of jungere to join) + -ura -ure — more at yoke
1. : an instance of joining : union , junction
at the juncture of four fields — Think
the juncture of the American Third and Seventh armies — E.K.Lindley & Edward Weintal
emphasizes the juncture of poetry and music — Gilbert Highet
2.
a. : joint , articulation , connection , seam
b. : the manner of transition between two consecutive speech sounds or between a speech sound and a pause
3. : a point of time ; especially : one made critical or important by a concurrence of circumstances
at certain junctures in the dancing, the scalps were raised high in the air — G.H.Fathauer
at this juncture in history
Synonyms:
pass , exigency , emergency , contingency , pinch , strait (or straits), crisis: these nouns all denote a critical or crucial time or state of affairs, as in the life of a person, an institution, or a country's history. juncture emphasizes the usually significant concurrence or convergence of events
we may now be at a vital juncture where the ideals of liberalism can best be achieved through separate institutions and not the omnicompetent state — P.W.Kurtz
occasions when there may be genuine uncertainty as to who should become prime minister. At such a juncture it is highly desirable to have someone charged with the duty of inviting a suitable person to form a government — R.M.Dawson
pass is stronger than juncture in implying an evil or distressing concurrence or convergence of events or the condition induced by such a concurrence, or, sometimes, a dilemma brought about by it
they did in a desperate pass the best they knew — J.J.Mallon
the frightful pass to which destiny had brought her — Arnold Bennett
exigency emphasizes the pressures brought to bear or the urgency of the demands created by a special situation, especially a juncture or pass
the exigencies of war
such travel exigencies as having to scout around for a room when you're tired and want to hole up for the night — Richard Joseph
social contacts for a presidential couple are pretty well restricted by official exigencies — S.H.Adams
emergency , implying more of a crucial nature but less necessary difficulty than exigency , is a sudden, unforeseen juncture or pass calling for immediate action to avoid disaster
a national emergency
aid in helping to meet the emergency of a large number of unemployed youths — American Guide Series: Minnesota
a great social emergency, teenage delinquency — D.W.Maurer & V.H.Vogel
contingency is an event or concurrence of events that is fortuitous, only remotely possible, or uncertain of occurrence
sense and ingenuity may be relied upon to cope with special contingencies — R.F.Heizer
the bank had accumulated a surplus … which it held against future contingencies and risks — Collier's Year Book
pinch implies pressure or the need for action but without quite the same intensity as emergency or exigency
could always in a pinch pawn my microscope for three pounds — W.S.Maugham
ready in a pinch to ride roughshod over opposition — William Power
strait , now commonly straits, applies to a troublesome situation from which escape is difficult because of hampering or binding circumstances
a moment of financial strait — F.L.Paxson
her father died and the family was left in dire financial straits — Current Biography
the army's truly desperate straits — F.V.W.Mason
crisis applies to a juncture or pass whose outcome will make a decisive difference, especially serving as a turning point as in a life, history, or the course of a disease
her adolescence had passed without the trace of a religious crisis — Aldous Huxley