Meanings
plural Javerts
- One who remorselessly pursues a perceived wrongdoer.
Ted and I have Javerts in our lives, those who will not accept the fact that God the Father has welcomed his prodigal son home.
2010, Gayle Haggard, Why I Stayed: The Choices I Made in My Darkest Hour, page 3342 more examples
Whether by instinct, as in Boston, or by psychological testing, as in St. Louis, some police departments are waking up to the characterological hazards of the police profession. But unfortunately there are still a good many Javerts around.
1951, Howard Whitman, Terror in the streets, page 351The Javerts in today's society are supported not with index cards and filing clerks, but with the latest electronic databases […]
2007, John Pugsley, The Chairman's Corner, page 34
Origin
From Javert, a police inspector in Victor Hugo's 1862 novel Les Misérables.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Javert. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Javert
“Javert.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Javert. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Javert,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Javert.
Source: Javert on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.