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• constitution
  constitution

  noun

  the system of fundamental principles according to which a nation, state, corporation, or the like, is governed.
• Constitution
  Constitution

  The fundamental law of the United States, drafted in Philadelphia in 1787 (see Constitutional Convention), ratified in 1788, and put into effect in 1789. It established a strong central government in place of the Articles of Confederation. (See Preamble to the Constitution.)

constitution

American  

[kon-sti-too-shuhn, -tyoo-] / ˌkɒn stɪˈtu ʃən, -ˈtju- /

noun

• constitutions
  plural

1. the system of fundamental principles according to which a nation, state, corporation, or the like, is governed.

2. the document embodying these principles.

3. (initial capital letter) Constitution of the United States.

4. the way in which a thing is composed or made up; makeup; composition.

   the chemical constitution of the cleanser.

5. the physical character of the body as to strength, health, etc..

   He has a strong constitution.

6. Medicine/Medical, Psychology. the aggregate of a person's physical and psychological characteristics.

7. the act or process of constituting; establishment.

8. the state of being constituted; formation.

9. any established arrangement or custom.

10. Archaic. character or condition of mind; disposition; temperament.

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constitution British  

/ ˌkɒnstɪˈtjuːʃən /

noun

1. the act of constituting or state of being constituted

2. the way in which a thing is composed; physical make-up; structure

3. the fundamental political principles on which a state is governed, esp when considered as embodying the rights of the subjects of that state

4. (often capital) (in certain countries, esp Australia and the US) a statute embodying such principles

5. a person's state of health

6. a person's disposition of mind; temperament

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Constitution ¹ Cultural  

1. The fundamental law of the United States, drafted in Philadelphia in 1787 (see Constitutional Convention), ratified in 1788, and put into effect in 1789. It established a strong central government in place of the Articles of Confederation. (See Preamble to the Constitution.)

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constitution ² Cultural  

1. A nation or state's fundamental set of laws. Most nations with constitutions have them in written form, such as the United States Constitution. The constitution of Britain, by contrast, is an informal set of traditions, based on several different laws.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• anticonstitution
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• constitutions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of constitution

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English constitucion “edict, ordinance,” from Anglo-French, from Latin constitūtiōn-, stem of constitūtiō “an appointing, establishing”; see constitute, -ion

Explanation

A constitution is a statement of the basic principles and laws of a nation, state, or group, such as the U.S. Constitution. Another very common meaning of constitution is the physical makeup of a person. The noun constitution is from Latin, from constitutus, "set up, established," plus the suffix -ion, meaning "act, state, or condition." So think of a constitution as how a body (yours, the government's) is set up. If you have a strong constitution, it means you don't get sick very often.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

constitution Constitution constitutions

Other debates have focused on whether a free Cuba should temporarily revive its 1940 constitution while a new one is drafted.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026

Sara Duterte is a frontrunner to replace Marcos in the 2028 elections, where the incumbent is ineligible under the constitution to stand for a second term.

From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026

Daniel Schwarcz of the University of Minnesota Law School argued in a 2018 paper published in the Connecticut Insurance Law Journal that the arrangement violates nondelegation principles in every state constitution.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

The elections were the first to be held under Kazakhstan's new constitution, which abolished the senate in favour of a new unicameral legislature and reset term limits that would have otherwise been imposed on Tokayev.

From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026

She would not have said that if he had been talking to one of the British women, even though some of them had helped write the Nigerian constitution.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Close to three in five support Canada actually joining the bloc, though Article 49 of the EU Constitution would appear to make that impossible.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

Any such payment would in any case require congressional authorization, as the US Constitution bars the president from spending Treasury funds without an appropriation made by law.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

According to the indictment, the state Constitution provides “a means for citizens to bypass the state legislature and enact statutes and constitutional amendments directly through the initiative process.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026

Yet Germany’s federal system gives states substantial powers over education, cultural policy and security—including control over the police and the regional branch of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

In early 1865, Illinois struck down its Black Laws and became the first state to ratify the Thirteenth Amendment, which enshrined in the Constitution the end of slavery.

From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield

It also runs counter to a long history of immigration in Argentina, which has one of the world's most lenient constitutions in this regard, according to sociologist Ivan Schuliaquer.

From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026

While France and the U.S. invoked the Enlightenment in their founding principles and constitutions, Germany built its postwar institutions on the memory of the Shoah.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

States have a “wide degree of discretion” to design their tax systems — including how they define income — so long as they do not violate their constitutions, Jurow Kleiman said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

In response to the decree, the Kurdish administration in Syria's north and north-east said it was "a first step" but called for "permanent constitutions that express the will of the people", rather than "temporary decrees".

From BBC ● Jan. 17, 2026

In his own memoirs he had selected May 15, 1776, as the most decisive moment, because that was the day the Continental Congress passed a resolution calling for new constitutions in each of the states.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

Related Words

• charter
• code
• custom
• legislation