Pronunciations (4)
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/ˌkɒn.stɪˈtjuː.ʃ(ə)n.(ə)l/
Pronunciation notes
- Received-Pronunciation
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/ˌkɑn.stɪˈt(j)u.ʃ(ə)n.(ə)l/
Pronunciation notes
- Canada
- General-American
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ˌkɒnstɪˈtjuːʃ(ə)n(ə)l
Pronunciation notes
- GB
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ˌkɑnstɪˈt(j)uʃ(ə)n(ə)l
Pronunciation notes
- US
Adjective
Belonging to, or inherent in, the constitution or structure of one's body or mind.
- Examples
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a constitutional infirmity constitutional ardour or dullness
For the benefit of one's constitution or health.
- Examples
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a constitutional walk
Relating to the constitution or composition of something; essential, fundamental.
Relating to a legal or political constitution (“the basic law of a nation or institution; the formal or informal system of primary principles and laws that regulates a government or other institution”).
- Examples
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a constitutional right constitutional reforms
Brexit has rocked the foundations of the nation and plunged everyone into a state of heightened constitutional anxiety.
More examples (3)
Some are already speculating that a constitutional crisis is brewing.
On January 18, 1810, Republican Senator Philip Reed introduced a constitutional amendment addressing the acceptance of titles of nobility by American citizens.³¹
A possible constitutional crisis loomed in Malawi following the reported death of President Bingu wa Mutharika, once hailed as a positive steward for the southern African country.
In compliance with or valid under a legal or political constitution.
- Examples
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The Supreme Court ruled against the applicant and found the statute constitutional.
More examples (1)
Thai charter court rules that only heterosexual marriages are constitutional: Same-sex marriage in Thailand will have to wait, as the Constitutional Court ruled unanimously today (Wednesday) that Section 1448 of the Civil and Commercial Code, defining marriage as being a union between a man and a woman, is constitutional.
Of a monarch: having a purely ceremonial role, or possessing powers limited by a constitution rather than plenary or unlimited powers.
Usage- also
Noun
Something that aids or fosters one's constitution (health): A walk that is taken regularly for good health and wellbeing.
- Examples
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More examples (3)
Moments of potential transcendence, such as an afternoon constitutional through an expressionistic wonderland recalling the Fuji Velvia vividness of What Dreams May Come, ring false in light of this project's mercenary origins.
it was then still just possible to have a relatively normal life at the family’s 25-bedroom mansion at 145 Piccadilly, from where the baby was taken for a two-hour constitutional in her pram to Hyde Park and back every day by her governess.
Every evening in the last years of the eighteenth century, at precisely the same hour, a solitary figure stepped forth from the most unusual house on Clapham Common to take his nightly constitutional. To avoid the prying eyes of his neighbors, he stuck to the middle of the road, never hailing those who recognized him or touching his hat to acknowledge passersby.
Something that aids or fosters one's constitution (health): An act of defecation.
Usage- euphemistic
- Examples
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morning constitutional
More examples (3)
For Mac McCrary and me, the Tet Offensive of 1968 begins as we sit in the outhouse. Since things are in such disorder, sergeants have been invited to use the officers' facility. We both arrive at the latrine at the same time to take a constitutional.
The painter looked up at the ceiling. He listened to the woman's television and wondered what to do. He got out of bed. The painter started the coffee pot. He went into the bathroom to take his morning constitutional. The poor painter could still hear the woman's television. Christ, how he hated her.
Or there was the quickie hire of the White dressed up to look like you the hirer yourself in a hoodie (fashion out of the film Rocky, guaranteed in writing) thundering along'n'away for a quickie ten-kays early-morning constitutional to clear out the tubes, fitness being part of your innate lifestyle out of the clean slate of your mind, and not the way your waistline was trying to meet the core of your gravity face-to-face.
Adjective
of benefit to or intended to benefit your physical makeup
- Examples
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constitutional walk
sanctioned by or consistent with or operating under the law determining the fundamental political principles of a government
- Antonyms
- Examples
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the constitutional right of free speech
constitutional government
More examples (1)
constitutional guarantees
existing as an essential constituent or characteristic
- Examples
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the Ptolemaic system with its built-in concept of periodicity
a constitutional inability to tell the truth
constitutional in the structure of something (especially your physical makeup)
- Synonyms
Noun
a regular walk taken as a form of exercise
- Broader terms