'unjustly-held' originates from the combination of 'unjustly' and 'held'. 'Unjustly' comes from 'unjust', which originates from Latin 'iniustus', where 'in-' meant 'not' and 'iustus' meant 'just'. 'Held' is the past participle of 'hold', which comes from Old English 'healdan', meaning 'to keep or grasp'.

'Unjustly-held' combines the adverb 'unjustly' with the past participle 'held', forming a compound adjective used in modern English.

Initially, 'unjustly' meant 'in a manner not just', and 'held' meant 'kept or detained'. Together, they describe a state of being detained unfairly.