constitution
Meanings
noun
- The act, or process of setting something up, or establishing something; the composition or structure of such a thing; its makeup.
- The formal or informal system of primary principles and laws that regulates a government or other institutions.
- A legal document describing such a formal system.
- A document issued by a religious authority serving to promulgate some particular church laws or doctrines.
- A person's physical makeup or temperament, especially in respect of robustness.
- The general health of a person.
name
- The supreme law of some countries, such as Australia, Ireland, and the United States.
Pronunciation
Word forms
Etymology
PIE word *ḱóm From Middle English constitucioun, constitucion (“edict, law, ordinance, regulation, rule, statute; body of laws or rules, or customs; body of fundamental principles; principle or rule (of science); creation”) from Old French constitucion (modern French constitution), a learned borrowing from Latin cōnstitūtiō, cōnstitūtiōnem (“character, constitution, disposition, nature; definition; point in dispute; order, regulation; arrangement, system”), from cōnstituō (“to establish, set up; to confirm; to decide, resolve”). Equivalent to constitute + -ion.
Synonyms
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