disjunct

1 of 2

adjective

dis·​junct dis-ˈjəŋ(k)t 

: marked by separation of or from usually contiguous parts or individuals: such as

a

: discontinuous

b

: relating to melodic progression by intervals larger than a major second compare conjunct

disjunct

2 of 2

noun

dis·​junct ˈdis-ˌjəŋ(k)t  dis-ˈjəŋ(k)t 

1

: any of the alternatives that make up a logical disjunction

2

: an adverb or adverbial (such as luckily in "Luckily we had an extra set" or in short in "In short, there is nothing we can do") that is loosely connected to a sentence and conveys the speaker's or writer's comment on its content, truth, or manner compare adjunct sense 2b

Examples of disjunct in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Campbell has a close relationship with Zorn, who works like a kind of compositional collagist, slicing whatever music crosses his path into strips, then gluing them together into sequences that are both familiar and jubilantly disjunct. —Justin Davidson, Vulture, 6 May 2024

Read full article Cape Cod: The most unusual bird report last week, and arguably the rarest bird of 2023 to date, was a lesser sand-plover, a shorebird from Asia with several disjunct populations in Kazakhstan, northern India, and western China to coastal areas in eastern Russia. —BostonGlobe.com, 19 Aug. 2023

The disjunct territory that did not become a state until 1959 continues to exist in our imagination—and in truth—as a place where Old World versions of wilderness survive, where Americans can still court danger, take the measure of their resourcefulness and perhaps reinvent themselves. —Richard Adams Carey, WSJ, 6 Jan. 2022

Almost all the old growth was cut down in the 19th century by industrial loggers, but one anomalous, disjunct population persists below the summit of Mount Read, a volcanic peak on the island’s soggy northwest coast. —Jared Farmer, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Jan. 2023

So these sartorial inaccuracies create a kind of disjunct. —Rachel Tashjian, Harper's BAZAAR, 9 Nov. 2022

Noun

Usually, new moons occur only once a month, but because there’s a slight disjunct between the moon’s phases—a 29.5-day cycle, on average—and the Gregorian calendar, some months can have two new moons: one at the beginning and one at the end. —Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 31 July 2019

As disjunct as Joe Kinosian and Kellen Blair’s slightly too-long musical is, the two wend their way through it all smoothly. —David Lyman, Cincinnati.com, 11 May 2018

So to have Anna, a television actress, bemoan the confines of her industry creates an unfortunate disjunct that weakens the narrative and lessens our sympathy. —Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2017

Usually, new moons occur only once a month, but because there’s a slight disjunct between the moon’s phases—a 29.5-day cycle, on average—and the Gregorian calendar, some months can have two new moons: one at the beginning and one at the end. —Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 28 Sep. 2016

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Latin disjunctus, past participle of disjungere to disjoin

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1921, in the meaning defined at sense 1