What does junked mean?
Junked most often describes something discarded because it is considered worthless, unwanted, or unusable: a dealer may junk an old vehicle, while a municipality junked equipment rather than repair it. As the past tense or past participle of junk, it also records an action already completed. Informal usage adds several adjectival senses: a machine can be described as junked when it is thoroughly broken, and a person can get junked through drugs or become junked out from exhaustion. The neutral disposal sense is common in British and American English, whereas the intoxication and exhaustion senses are chiefly informal and sound more natural in American slang. Because junked usually implies a final decision or condition, it is stronger than merely used or damaged. Its value as a word lies in that decisive edge: it identifies something treated as having no worthwhile future.
To discard or reject something as junk or of no value; informally, to use drugs to the point of intoxication.
"The manufacturer junked the damaged prototypes after safety tests failed."
The discard sense is broadly neutral, while the intoxication sense is informal.
Discarded or regarded as worthless; informally, ruined, inoperable, intoxicated, or exhausted.
"The mechanic showed us the junked transmission that had stopped the car."
The intoxication and exhaustion meanings are chiefly informal and more common in American English.
Junked marks the decisive moment when something unwanted becomes disposable.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does junked come from?
Junked is formed regularly from the English verb junk, itself derived from the older noun junk. The noun was attested in Middle English for goods or material of little value, but its ultimate origin is uncertain, and etymologists have not established a single certain source. In modern English, junked also functions attributively, as in a junked car.
How junked is actually used
The disposal sense is neutral and common in professional, commercial, and household contexts. The intoxication and exhaustion senses are informal, strongly associated with American vernacular English, and may sound disparaging when applied to a person.
Easily confused with junked
Although they can sound similar in informal speech, janked usually means stolen or jerking sharply, whereas junked means discarded, ruined, or intoxicated.