institutional

[ in-sti-too-shuh-nl, -tyoo- ]
See synonyms for institutional on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. of or relating to organized establishments, foundations, societies, or the like, or to the buildings they occupy: The association offers an institutional membership discount to members of affiliated groups.

  2. of the nature of an established organization or institution: institutional bureaucracy.

  1. relating to or noting a policy, practice, or belief system that has been established as normative or customary throughout an institution or society, particularly as perpetuated in institutions of a public character, as schools, courts, or legislative bodies: institutional racism in the criminal justice system;institutional sexism in academia;institutional prejudice against members of the gay community.

  2. characterized by the blandness, drabness, uniformity, and lack of individualized attention attributed to large institutions that serve many people: institutional food.

  3. (of advertising) having as the primary object the establishment of goodwill and a favorable reputation rather than the immediate sale of the product.

  4. relating to established principles or institutes, especially of jurisprudence.

Origin of institutional

1
First recorded in 1610–20; institution + -al1

Other words from institutional

  • in·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverb
  • an·ti-in·sti·tu·tion·al, adjective
  • an·ti-in·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverb
  • in·ter·in·sti·tu·tion·al, adjective
  • in·ter·in·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverb
  • non·in·sti·tu·tion·al, adjective
  • non·in·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverb
  • un·in·sti·tu·tion·al, adjective
  • un·in·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverb

Words Nearby institutional

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use institutional in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for institutional

institutional

/ (ˌɪnstɪˈtjuːʃənəl) /


adjective
  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of institutions

  2. dull, routine, and uniform: institutional meals

  1. relating to principles or institutes, esp of law

Derived forms of institutional

  • institutionally, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012