juxtapose
Americanverb (used with object)
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juxtaposes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
juxtaposed,
past participle, past
-
juxtaposing
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
juxtaposesimple
-
juxtaposessimple
-
have juxtaposedperfect
-
has juxtaposedperfect
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am juxtaposingprogressive
-
are juxtaposingprogressive
-
is juxtaposingprogressive
-
have been juxtaposingperfect progressive
-
has been juxtaposingperfect progressive
Past
-
juxtaposedsimple
-
had juxtaposedperfect
-
was juxtaposingprogressive
-
were juxtaposingprogressive
-
had been juxtaposingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of juxtapose
First recorded in 1850–55; back formation from juxtaposition
Explanation
See the word "pose" in juxtapose? When you juxtapose, you are "posing" or positioning things side by side. The verb juxtapose requires contrasting things placed next to one other: "The collage juxtaposed pictures of Jane while she was growing up and as an adult." Juxtapose is used often when referring to contrasting elements in the arts. "The music juxtaposed the instrumentation of jazz with the harmonies of soul."
Vocabulary lists containing juxtapose
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This Week In Culture: March 29–April 4, 2020
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"Like, the rebel I am, I love to juxtapose," she says.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
The high-stakes moment was captured over three days in Lancaster, chosen for a vast watercolor sky and purple-tinged earth that juxtapose with the turmoil on Rue’s face.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
The effect of the metanarrative is to juxtapose Byron’s violent passions with the careful, repressed behavior of one who hoped to capture him in literature.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 26, 2025
That inspired Juson to juxtapose the humanity of Black people against the words that sought to dehumanize them.
From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2024
If we could only juxtapose one eyeball of this sanctified woman and a television tube, both being roughly of the same shape and design, what a phantasmagoria of exploding electrodes would occur.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
An innovative aspect of this show is that it juxtaposes Western works identified as Orientalist—the depiction of Middle Eastern subjects and scenes and/or the incorporation of Islamic motifs—with source images and objects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
Much like the film, the choreography juxtaposes joy with despair in an ever-changing environment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2026
This year's exhibit juxtaposes elegant fashion looks with paintings and sculpture: think a Saint Laurent design next to Van Gogh's "Irises", or a John Galliano gown for Maison Margiela paired with an antique statue.
From Barron's ● May 4, 2026
Rosales juxtaposes a wall of psychedelic party posters, glowing beneath blacklight, with a roadside shrine of flowers and votive candles remembering loss.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2025
Goldstein repeatedly juxtaposes nouns and pronouns in the first and third person: that child... me; she.../... herself; I... someone else.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
He juxtaposed beautiful balletic movement with eerie details, including an arm claw or a slightly tilted head.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Video of these rattling sets, juxtaposed against Pop-A-Shot games, swiftly made the rounds on social media.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026
The spokesperson said it’s understandable for reporters to ask questions about the conflicts, “but out of fairness, it should be juxtaposed by the fact that there’s been no indication of favorable treatment.”
From MarketWatch ● May 18, 2026
In the film, Orban's words are juxtaposed with interviews with around 20 figures across 14 of Hungary's 19 counties, from the south to the north-east.
From BBC ● Mar. 26, 2026
The smell of home juxtaposed with the sweaty, breathless odor of desperation and the taste of rust in my mouth.
From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed
Suozzi and Moolenaar kicked off the 2020 NPB with a running shtick — juxtaposing their backgrounds.
From Salon ● May 29, 2026
When you’re juxtaposing that with really stark things, it becomes darker.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026
This show examines how her output responded to and influenced her teachers and contemporaries by juxtaposing her art with works by Helen Frankenthaler, Robert Motherwell, Isamu Noguchi, Peter Voulkos and others.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2025
The morning show also played a viral clip of typically silent Barron speaking, juxtaposing it with a clip of him as an eight-year-old.
From Salon ● Dec. 6, 2024
By juxtaposing the pieces of paper against each other and overlapping one color with another, one can almost produce every shade of color.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
