jur
Latinlaw, right, oath, justice
About This Root
At the heart of Roman society sat one word: jūs — meaning both 'law' and 'right.' To a Roman, these were the same thing: what is lawful is what is rightfully yours. From jūs came jūstus (conforming to law, fair), and from there English drew just (fair) and justice (the state of fairness, and the system that enforces it). When you justify something, you literally 'make it just' — you show it conforms to what is right.
But jūs had a twin idea: swearing. To bind yourself to the law, you took an oath — jūrāre, 'to swear by what is right.' A group sworn in to deliver a verdict became a jury; each sworn member is a juror. If you swore falsely, you committed perjury (per- 'through, falsely' + jūrāre) — a lie across your oath. Conjure began the same way: con- (together) + jūrāre = to bind people by a shared oath, which over centuries drifted into 'to summon by magic spell,' as if commanding spirits under oath.
The most important branch fused two roots. Jūdex, the Roman 'judge,' was built from jūs (law) + dīcere (to speak): a judge is literally 'one who speaks the law.' This jud- form runs through judge, judgement, judicial, judiciary, and judicious (showing good judgement). The same fusion explains jurisdiction — jūris (of law) + dīctiō (a saying) = the power to speak the law over a place. And it explains prejudice: prae- (before) + jūdicium (judgement) = a judgement made before the facts — a pre-judging, hence a bias.
Then comes the dark side of jūs. Put in- ('not, against') in front and you get injūria — a thing done against the law, a wrongdoing. English narrowed it to physical harm: to injure is to do someone wrong, and an injury is the damage. Keep the abstract sense and you get injustice — the absence of what is right.
A family caution: the adjust / adjustment / adjustable / readjust group is long associated with this root but its origin is disputed. Most dictionaries trace it to Old French ajuster, from Latin ad- + juxtā ('near, side by side') — 'to bring near, to fit together' — not from jūs. The link to 'law/right' is likely a later folk-etymology. We keep it here because learners have long grouped it with jur, but treat the connection as uncertain.
Picture a courtroom: a jury is sworn in (jūrāre = swear), then a judge speaks the law (jūdex = jūs + speak) to deliver justice. Swear → judge → justice — that's the whole family. And remember in- + jus = 'against the law' = injury.
Core Words Deep Dive
The few words from this family worth telling in full — one by one.
A two-root word hiding in plain sight: *jūdex* = jūs (law) + dīcere (speak), 'one who speaks the law.' That origin explains why 'judge' means both the courtroom official and the everyday act of forming an opinion — in both cases you are pronouncing a verdict on something.
prae- (before) + jūdicium (judgement) = a verdict reached *before* the evidence. The whole concept is built into the word: prejudice is literally pre-judging. Once you see 'pre-judge,' the meaning 'unfair, fixed opinion' becomes obvious — you decided before you had the right to.
The family's surprise member. in- (not, against) + jūs (law, right) = injūria, 'a thing done against the law' — a wrong. Latin meant it abstractly (a wrong done to someone), but English narrowed it to physical harm. The older abstract sense survives in 'injure someone's pride / reputation' and in injustice.
Not from 'judging' but from *swearing*: jūrāre (to swear an oath). A jury is a body of people *sworn in* to deliver a true verdict. The same oath-root explains perjury (a false oath) and conjure (originally to bind by a shared oath).
From jūstus (conforming to law/right). English carries two senses at once: the moral ideal of fairness ('fight for justice') and the concrete machinery that enforces it ('the justice system,' or a 'Justice' of the Supreme Court). Same word, abstract value and institution fused together.
Related Roots
jur and dic meet inside two words: a *jūdex* (judge) is jūs + dīcere = 'one who speaks the law,' and *jurisdiction* is 'the saying of the law.' Whenever a jur-word involves authority being declared aloud, dic ('say') is hiding inside it.
Both touch 'law,' but from different angles. jur (jūs) is law as *right and justice* — the principle (justice, jury, judge). leg (lēx, lēgis) is law as the *written statute* — the enacted rule (legal, legislate, legitimate). Principle of fairness → jur; the rule on the books → leg.
Associated Words · 75
abjure
To formally renounce a belief or allegiance
adjudge
To officially declare or determine by judgment
adjudicate
To make an official judgment in a dispute; 裁决，裁定
adjudication
The legal process of reaching a formal judgment or decision
adjudicative
Relating to official judgment or adjudication
adjudicator
A person who makes official judgments or settles disputes
adjust
To make changes to improve or adapt something
adjustability
The capacity of being adjustable
adjustable
Capable of being adjusted or regulated
adjustable-rate
Having a variable or floating interest rate
adjuster
A person who assesses insurance claims; a device for adjusting
adjustment
A small change or modification to improve something
adjustor
A person who assesses insurance claims
age-adjusted
Corrected to account for age differences in data
conjure
To perform magic; to summon by supernatural power
height-adjustable
Able to be raised or lowered to different heights
injudicious
Showing poor judgement; unwise or ill-considered
injure
To cause physical harm or damage to someone or something
injured
Having suffered physical harm; hurt
injurious
Causing harm or damage; harmful
injury
Physical or psychological harm done to a person or animal
injustice
Unfair treatment; absence of justice
judge
to evaluate or decide; a legal official
judgement
The ability to decide wisely; an opinion; a court ruling
judgeship
The position or office of a judge
judgmental
Too quick to criticize or judge others harshly
judiciary
The court system and its judges; relating to the administration of justice
judicious
Showing good judgment and sound thinking
judiciously
With good sense and careful judgment
jural
Relating to law or legal rights and obligations
jurisdiction
The legal authority to make decisions; the area under such authority
jurisprudence
The theoretical study and philosophy of law
jurist
An expert in law or a judge
juristic
Relating to law or jurisprudence
juristical
Relating to jurists or jurisprudence
juror
A member of a jury in a court of law
jury
A group chosen to give a verdict in court; a panel of judges in a competition
just
only; simply; just now; morally fair
just-in-time
Produced or delivered exactly when needed, without excess stock
just-picked
Freshly harvested or picked
just-published
Recently published or released
just-right
Exactly correct or perfectly suitable
justice
Fairness and impartiality; the legal system of punishment; 正义；司法
justifiable
Able to be shown as reasonable or acceptable
justifiably
With good reason; in a defensible manner
justification
A reason that makes an action seem acceptable; the act of justifying
justificatory
Providing justification or defence for something
justified
Having good reasons; (of text) aligned at both margins
justify
To give valid reasons for an action; to prove something is right or acceptable
justly
In a fair and morally right manner
maladjustment
Inability to adapt properly to one's environment
misjudge
To assess or judge incorrectly
misjudgment
A mistake in judgment
perjure
To lie deliberately while under oath in court
perjurer
A person who lies under oath in a court of law
perjurious
Relating to or involving perjury; guilty of lying under oath
perjury
The crime of lying under oath in court
prejudge
To judge someone or something before having all the facts
prejudgment
A judgment formed before sufficient evidence is available
prejudice
An unreasonable hostile opinion toward a group; to cause bias or harm
prejudiced
Having unfair or biased opinions about someone or something
prejudicial
Harmful to someone's interests; causing or showing bias
readjust
To adjust or adapt again
readjustment
The act of adjusting again to new circumstances; 重新调整，再适应
self-adjusting
Automatically adapting without manual adjustment
self-justification
The act of defending or making excuses for one's own actions
self-justifying
Tending to defend or make excuses for one's own actions
uninjured
Not having suffered any physical or mental harm
unjust
Not fair or right; violating justice
unjustifiable
Impossible to justify or excuse
unjustifiably
In a manner that cannot be justified
unjustified
Without good reason; unwarranted
unjustly
In an unfair or unjust manner
unprejudiced
Free from bias or prejudice; fair-minded
well-adjusted
Emotionally stable and psychologically healthy; 心理健康的，适应环境的