justify for

USAGE SUMMARY

"justify for" is not a correct and usable phrase in written English.
The correct phrasing would be "justify why". For example, "The teacher asked the student to justify why she was late to class."

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

News & Media

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

His other scenarios entail non-stop participation decline.That is a hard forecast to justify, for a couple of reasons.

The Economist

"We'll be asked, 'Did the lawyers recommend it?' And if the lawyers didn't, it's going to be hard to justify for the president".

The New York Times - Magazine

She also has a salary of about twelve million dollars, which CNN could not easily justify for a program whose audience is so much smaller.

The New Yorker

Nor could the interest in "preventing flight" be stretched, he wrote, to "justify, for instance, detaining a suspect who is 10 miles away, ready to board a plane".

The New York Times

When his play slipped last season, the irksome details of his relationship with management seemed harder to justify for team officials.

The New York Times - Sports

He said it was "hard to justify" for manufacturers to spend time and money putting DAB into cars in the absence of certainty over switchover.

The Guardian

"You can imagine an argument that games are widespread enough to justify, for the first time, a broad slate of adaptations of games.

The Guardian - Tech

The costs of litigation are hard to justify for institutional investors, since in most cases the benefits of activism are very difficult to predict.

Harvard Business Review

Gordon goes to some length to try to justify — for himself — the crimes that his students have committed, or at least to understand them within a sociological context, instead of judging from a position of privilege.

The New Yorker

"We are a wealthy nation, and there is not much reason that I can justify for anybody who lives within our borders doing without essential health care, and I'm happy to tell you that very few people do," he said.

The New York Times - Magazine

If she only wins narrowly Tuesday, even the goal of getting close in pledged delegates will become more remote, and her continuing candidacy will be impossibe to justify for anybody who has the Democratic Party's interests at heart.

The New York Times

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Always use "justify why" or "provide justification for" instead of "justify for". This correction ensures grammatical accuracy and improves clarity.

Common error

Avoid using "justify for" as it's grammatically incorrect. Instead, use "justify why" or rephrase to "provide justification for" to maintain clarity and correctness in your writing.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "justify for" is often intended to function as a verb phrase requiring an object to explain or defend an action, decision, or belief. However, Ludwig AI identifies it as grammatically incorrect, instead suggesting the use of "justify why".

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

39%

Science

39%

Formal & Business

9%

Less common in

Wiki

4%

Reference

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, while the phrase "justify for" appears frequently in various sources according to Ludwig, it is grammatically incorrect. Ludwig AI suggests using "justify why" instead, or rephrasing to use "provide justification for". Despite its common usage, especially in News & Media and Scientific contexts, adhering to correct grammar is essential for clear and professional communication. Remember to use "justify why" to maintain clarity and accuracy in your writing. Always consider source authority and grammatical correctness to enhance the quality of your content.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

justify why

Replaces 'for' with 'why' to correct the grammatical structure and indicate a reason.

provide justification for

Replaces "justify" with "provide justification" to add emphasis on the act of justifying.

explain the reason for

Substitutes "justify" with "explain the reason" to focus on explaining the underlying cause.

give reasons for

Replaces "justify" with "give reasons" to offer a simple and direct alternative.

rationalize

Uses "rationalize" as a single-word substitute for "justify for", implying an attempt to make something seem reasonable.

defend

Uses "defend" to show that there is a challenge against an opinion.

account for

Replaces "justify" with "account for" to focus on providing a clear explanation.

vindicate

Suggests proving the validity or righteousness of an action or decision.

substantiate

Uses "substantiate" which implies to provide evidence to support a claim or action.

validate

Replaces "justify" with "validate" to focus on confirming or supporting something's correctness.

FAQs

What is the correct way to use "justify for" in a sentence?

The phrase "justify for" is grammatically incorrect. The correct usage is to use "justify why" or to rephrase the sentence using "provide justification for".

What can I say instead of "justify for"?

Instead of "justify for", you can use alternatives like "justify why", "give reasons for", or "explain the reason for".

Is it correct to say "justify for" or should I use another phrase?

It is not correct to say "justify for". You should use a grammatically correct alternative such as "justify why" or rephrase to use "provide justification for".

What's the difference between "justify for" and "justify why"?

"Justify for" is grammatically incorrect. "Justify why" is the correct phrase to use when asking for or providing a reason for something. You can also use phrases like "explain the reason for".