diff --git a/docs/guide/db-active-record.md b/docs/guide/db-active-record.md
index dd1c732..43805b3 100644
--- a/docs/guide/db-active-record.md
+++ b/docs/guide/db-active-record.md
@@ -465,14 +465,14 @@ an `ActiveQuery` instance, while `$customer->orders` returns an array of `Order`
 the query results in nothing).
 
 
-Relations with Pivot Table
---------------------------
+Relations with Junction Table
+-----------------------------
 
-Sometimes, two tables are related together via an intermediary table called [pivot table][]. To declare such relations,
+Sometimes, two tables are related together via an intermediary table called [junction table][]. To declare such relations,
 we can customize the [[yii\db\ActiveQuery]] object by calling its [[yii\db\ActiveQuery::via()|via()]] or
 [[yii\db\ActiveQuery::viaTable()|viaTable()]] method.
 
-For example, if table `order` and table `item` are related via pivot table `order_item`,
+For example, if table `order` and table `item` are related via junction table `order_item`,
 we can declare the `items` relation in the `Order` class like the following:
 
 ```php
@@ -488,7 +488,7 @@ class Order extends \yii\db\ActiveRecord
 
 The [[yii\db\ActiveQuery::via()|via()]] method is similar to [[yii\db\ActiveQuery::viaTable()|viaTable()]] except that
 the first parameter of [[yii\db\ActiveQuery::via()|via()]] takes a relation name declared in the ActiveRecord class
-instead of the pivot table name. For example, the above `items` relation can be equivalently declared as follows:
+instead of the junction table name. For example, the above `items` relation can be equivalently declared as follows:
 
 ```php
 class Order extends \yii\db\ActiveRecord
@@ -506,7 +506,7 @@ class Order extends \yii\db\ActiveRecord
 }
 ```
 
-[pivot table]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pivot_table "Pivot table on Wikipedia"
+[junction table]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junction_table "Junction table on Wikipedia"
 
 
 Lazy and Eager Loading
@@ -561,7 +561,7 @@ As you can see, only two SQL queries are needed for the same task!
 
 > Info: In general, if you are eager loading `N` relations among which `M` relations are defined with `via()` or `viaTable()`,
 > a total number of `1+M+N` SQL queries will be performed: one query to bring back the rows for the primary table, one for
-> each of the `M` pivot tables corresponding to the `via()` or `viaTable()` calls, and one for each of the `N` related tables.
+> each of the `M` junction tables corresponding to the `via()` or `viaTable()` calls, and one for each of the `N` related tables.
 
 > Note: When you are customizing `select()` with eager loading, make sure you include the columns that link
 > the related models. Otherwise, the related models will not be loaded. For example,
diff --git a/extensions/elasticsearch/ActiveQuery.php b/extensions/elasticsearch/ActiveQuery.php
index 7c67177..c31ae53 100644
--- a/extensions/elasticsearch/ActiveQuery.php
+++ b/extensions/elasticsearch/ActiveQuery.php
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ use yii\db\ActiveRelationTrait;
  * A relation is specified by [[link]] which represents the association between columns
  * of different tables; and the multiplicity of the relation is indicated by [[multiple]].
  *
- * If a relation involves a pivot table, it may be specified by [[via()]].
+ * If a relation involves a junction table, it may be specified by [[via()]].
  * This methods may only be called in a relational context. Same is true for [[inverseOf()]], which
  * marks a relation as inverse of another relation.
  *
diff --git a/extensions/gii/generators/model/Generator.php b/extensions/gii/generators/model/Generator.php
index ffbac25..276e7ef 100644
--- a/extensions/gii/generators/model/Generator.php
+++ b/extensions/gii/generators/model/Generator.php
@@ -388,12 +388,12 @@ class Generator extends \yii\gii\Generator
     }
 
     /**
-     * Checks if the given table is a pivot table.
+     * Checks if the given table is a junction table.
      * For simplicity, this method only deals with the case where the pivot contains two PK columns,
      * each referencing a column in a different table.
      * @param \yii\db\TableSchema the table being checked
-     * @return array|boolean the relevant foreign key constraint information if the table is a pivot table,
-     * or false if the table is not a pivot table.
+     * @return array|boolean the relevant foreign key constraint information if the table is a junction table,
+     * or false if the table is not a junction table.
      */
     protected function checkPivotTable($table)
     {
diff --git a/extensions/mongodb/ActiveQuery.php b/extensions/mongodb/ActiveQuery.php
index 8a50d08..e296a4b 100644
--- a/extensions/mongodb/ActiveQuery.php
+++ b/extensions/mongodb/ActiveQuery.php
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ use yii\db\ActiveRelationTrait;
  * A relation is specified by [[link]] which represents the association between columns
  * of different tables; and the multiplicity of the relation is indicated by [[multiple]].
  *
- * If a relation involves a pivot table, it may be specified by [[via()]].
+ * If a relation involves a junction table, it may be specified by [[via()]].
  * This methods may only be called in a relational context. Same is true for [[inverseOf()]], which
  * marks a relation as inverse of another relation.
  *
@@ -102,7 +102,7 @@ class ActiveQuery extends Query implements ActiveQueryInterface
             // lazy loading
             if ($this->via instanceof self) {
                 // via pivot collection
-                $viaModels = $this->via->findPivotRows([$this->primaryModel]);
+                $viaModels = $this->via->findJunctionRows([$this->primaryModel]);
                 $this->filterByModels($viaModels);
             } elseif (is_array($this->via)) {
                 // via relation
diff --git a/extensions/redis/ActiveQuery.php b/extensions/redis/ActiveQuery.php
index dce68e0..3a6248a 100644
--- a/extensions/redis/ActiveQuery.php
+++ b/extensions/redis/ActiveQuery.php
@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ use yii\db\QueryTrait;
  * A relation is specified by [[link]] which represents the association between columns
  * of different tables; and the multiplicity of the relation is indicated by [[multiple]].
  *
- * If a relation involves a pivot table, it may be specified by [[via()]].
+ * If a relation involves a junction table, it may be specified by [[via()]].
  * This methods may only be called in a relational context. Same is true for [[inverseOf()]], which
  * marks a relation as inverse of another relation.
  *
@@ -312,8 +312,8 @@ class ActiveQuery extends Component implements ActiveQueryInterface
         if ($this->primaryModel !== null) {
             // lazy loading
             if ($this->via instanceof self) {
-                // via pivot table
-                $viaModels = $this->via->findPivotRows([$this->primaryModel]);
+                // via junction table
+                $viaModels = $this->via->findJunctionRows([$this->primaryModel]);
                 $this->filterByModels($viaModels);
             } elseif (is_array($this->via)) {
                 // via relation
diff --git a/extensions/sphinx/ActiveQuery.php b/extensions/sphinx/ActiveQuery.php
index ac0747e..e670cce 100644
--- a/extensions/sphinx/ActiveQuery.php
+++ b/extensions/sphinx/ActiveQuery.php
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ use yii\db\ActiveRelationTrait;
  * A relation is specified by [[link]] which represents the association between columns
  * of different tables; and the multiplicity of the relation is indicated by [[multiple]].
  *
- * If a relation involves a pivot table, it may be specified by [[via()]].
+ * If a relation involves a junction table, it may be specified by [[via()]].
  * This methods may only be called in a relational context. Same is true for [[inverseOf()]], which
  * marks a relation as inverse of another relation.
  *
@@ -225,7 +225,7 @@ class ActiveQuery extends Query implements ActiveQueryInterface
             // lazy loading a relational query
             if ($this->via instanceof self) {
                 // via pivot index
-                $viaModels = $this->via->findPivotRows([$this->primaryModel]);
+                $viaModels = $this->via->findJunctionRows([$this->primaryModel]);
                 $this->filterByModels($viaModels);
             } elseif (is_array($this->via)) {
                 // via relation
diff --git a/framework/db/ActiveQuery.php b/framework/db/ActiveQuery.php
index 1ee8407..8f7f87f 100644
--- a/framework/db/ActiveQuery.php
+++ b/framework/db/ActiveQuery.php
@@ -58,7 +58,7 @@ namespace yii\db;
  * A relation is specified by [[link]] which represents the association between columns
  * of different tables; and the multiplicity of the relation is indicated by [[multiple]].
  *
- * If a relation involves a pivot table, it may be specified by [[via()]] or [[viaTable()]] method.
+ * If a relation involves a junction table, it may be specified by [[via()]] or [[viaTable()]] method.
  * These methods may only be called in a relational context. Same is true for [[inverseOf()]], which
  * marks a relation as inverse of another relation and [[onCondition()]] which adds a condition that
  * is to be added to relational query join condition.
@@ -175,8 +175,8 @@ class ActiveQuery extends Query implements ActiveQueryInterface
             $where = $this->where;
 
             if ($this->via instanceof self) {
-                // via pivot table
-                $viaModels = $this->via->findPivotRows([$this->primaryModel]);
+                // via junction table
+                $viaModels = $this->via->findJunctionRows([$this->primaryModel]);
                 $this->filterByModels($viaModels);
             } elseif (is_array($this->via)) {
                 // via relation
@@ -655,9 +655,9 @@ class ActiveQuery extends Query implements ActiveQueryInterface
     }
 
     /**
-     * Specifies the pivot table for a relational query.
+     * Specifies the junction table for a relational query.
      *
-     * Use this method to specify a pivot table when declaring a relation in the [[ActiveRecord]] class:
+     * Use this method to specify a junction table when declaring a relation in the [[ActiveRecord]] class:
      *
      * ```php
      * public function getItems()
@@ -667,11 +667,11 @@ class ActiveQuery extends Query implements ActiveQueryInterface
      * }
      * ```
      *
-     * @param string $tableName the name of the pivot table.
-     * @param array $link the link between the pivot table and the table associated with [[primaryModel]].
-     * The keys of the array represent the columns in the pivot table, and the values represent the columns
+     * @param string $tableName the name of the junction table.
+     * @param array $link the link between the junction table and the table associated with [[primaryModel]].
+     * The keys of the array represent the columns in the junction table, and the values represent the columns
      * in the [[primaryModel]] table.
-     * @param callable $callable a PHP callback for customizing the relation associated with the pivot table.
+     * @param callable $callable a PHP callback for customizing the relation associated with the junction table.
      * Its signature should be `function($query)`, where `$query` is the query to be customized.
      * @return static
      * @see via()
diff --git a/framework/db/ActiveQueryInterface.php b/framework/db/ActiveQueryInterface.php
index 52d807c..6b0af91 100644
--- a/framework/db/ActiveQueryInterface.php
+++ b/framework/db/ActiveQueryInterface.php
@@ -80,9 +80,9 @@ interface ActiveQueryInterface extends QueryInterface
     public function with();
 
     /**
-     * Specifies the relation associated with the pivot table for use in relational query.
+     * Specifies the relation associated with the junction table for use in relational query.
      * @param string $relationName the relation name. This refers to a relation declared in the [[ActiveRelationTrait::primaryModel|primaryModel]] of the relation.
-     * @param callable $callable a PHP callback for customizing the relation associated with the pivot table.
+     * @param callable $callable a PHP callback for customizing the relation associated with the junction table.
      * Its signature should be `function($query)`, where `$query` is the query to be customized.
      * @return static the relation object itself.
      */
diff --git a/framework/db/ActiveRecordInterface.php b/framework/db/ActiveRecordInterface.php
index 87ea5f7..6b57815 100644
--- a/framework/db/ActiveRecordInterface.php
+++ b/framework/db/ActiveRecordInterface.php
@@ -365,15 +365,15 @@ interface ActiveRecordInterface
      * to be the corresponding primary key value(s) in the other record.
      * The record with the foreign key will be saved into database without performing validation.
      *
-     * If the relationship involves a pivot table, a new row will be inserted into the
-     * pivot table which contains the primary key values from both records.
+     * If the relationship involves a junction table, a new row will be inserted into the
+     * junction table which contains the primary key values from both records.
      *
      * This method requires that the primary key value is not null.
      *
      * @param string $name the case sensitive name of the relationship.
      * @param static $model the record to be linked with the current one.
-     * @param array $extraColumns additional column values to be saved into the pivot table.
-     * This parameter is only meaningful for a relationship involving a pivot table
+     * @param array $extraColumns additional column values to be saved into the junction table.
+     * This parameter is only meaningful for a relationship involving a junction table
      * (i.e., a relation set with `[[ActiveQueryInterface::via()]]`.)
      */
     public function link($name, $model, $extraColumns = []);
diff --git a/framework/db/ActiveRelationTrait.php b/framework/db/ActiveRelationTrait.php
index d916131..a952702 100644
--- a/framework/db/ActiveRelationTrait.php
+++ b/framework/db/ActiveRelationTrait.php
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ trait ActiveRelationTrait
      */
     public $link;
     /**
-     * @var array|object the query associated with the pivot table. Please call [[via()]]
+     * @var array|object the query associated with the junction table. Please call [[via()]]
      * to set this property instead of directly setting it.
      * This property is only used in relational context.
      * @see via()
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ trait ActiveRelationTrait
     }
 
     /**
-     * Specifies the relation associated with the pivot table.
+     * Specifies the relation associated with the junction table.
      *
      * Use this method to specify a pivot record/table when declaring a relation in the [[ActiveRecord]] class:
      *
@@ -96,7 +96,7 @@ trait ActiveRelationTrait
      * ```
      *
      * @param string $relationName the relation name. This refers to a relation declared in [[primaryModel]].
-     * @param callable $callable a PHP callback for customizing the relation associated with the pivot table.
+     * @param callable $callable a PHP callback for customizing the relation associated with the junction table.
      * Its signature should be `function($query)`, where `$query` is the query to be customized.
      * @return static the relation object itself.
      */
@@ -195,10 +195,10 @@ trait ActiveRelationTrait
         }
 
         if ($this->via instanceof self) {
-            // via pivot table
+            // via junction table
             /* @var $viaQuery ActiveRelationTrait */
             $viaQuery = $this->via;
-            $viaModels = $viaQuery->findPivotRows($primaryModels);
+            $viaModels = $viaQuery->findJunctionRows($primaryModels);
             $this->filterByModels($viaModels);
         } elseif (is_array($this->via)) {
             // via relation
@@ -490,7 +490,7 @@ trait ActiveRelationTrait
      * @param array $primaryModels either array of AR instances or arrays
      * @return array
      */
-    private function findPivotRows($primaryModels)
+    private function findJunctionRows($primaryModels)
     {
         if (empty($primaryModels)) {
             return [];
diff --git a/framework/db/BaseActiveRecord.php b/framework/db/BaseActiveRecord.php
index 3f71077..17320cc 100644
--- a/framework/db/BaseActiveRecord.php
+++ b/framework/db/BaseActiveRecord.php
@@ -1138,15 +1138,15 @@ abstract class BaseActiveRecord extends Model implements ActiveRecordInterface
      * to be the corresponding primary key value(s) in the other model.
      * The model with the foreign key will be saved into database without performing validation.
      *
-     * If the relationship involves a pivot table, a new row will be inserted into the
-     * pivot table which contains the primary key values from both models.
+     * If the relationship involves a junction table, a new row will be inserted into the
+     * junction table which contains the primary key values from both models.
      *
      * Note that this method requires that the primary key value is not null.
      *
      * @param string $name the case sensitive name of the relationship
      * @param ActiveRecordInterface $model the model to be linked with the current one.
-     * @param array $extraColumns additional column values to be saved into the pivot table.
-     * This parameter is only meaningful for a relationship involving a pivot table
+     * @param array $extraColumns additional column values to be saved into the junction table.
+     * This parameter is only meaningful for a relationship involving a junction table
      * (i.e., a relation set with [[ActiveRelationTrait::via()]] or `[[ActiveQuery::viaTable()]]`.)
      * @throws InvalidCallException if the method is unable to link two models.
      */