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fundamental - 6 dictionary results

fun⋅da⋅men⋅tal

  [fuhn-duh-men-tl]
Use fundamental in a Sentence
–adjective
1. serving as, or being an essential part of, a foundation or basis; basic; underlying: fundamental principles; the fundamental structure.
2. of, pertaining to, or affecting the foundation or basis: a fundamental revision.
3. being an original or primary source: a fundamental idea.
4. Music. (of a chord) having its root as its lowest note.
–noun
5. a basic principle, rule, law, or the like, that serves as the groundwork of a system; essential part: to master the fundamentals of a trade.
6. Also called fundamental note, fundamental tone. Music.
a. the root of a chord.
b. the generator of a series of harmonics.
7. Physics. the component of lowest frequency in a composite wave.
Origin:
1400–50; late ME < ML fundāmentālis of, belonging to a foundation. See fundament, -al 1

Related forms:
fun⋅da⋅men⋅tal⋅i⋅ty, fun⋅da⋅men⋅tal⋅ness, noun
fun⋅da⋅men⋅tal⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. indispensable, primary.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To fundamental
fun·da·men·tal   (fŭn'də-měn'tl)   
adj.  
    1. Of or relating to the foundation or base; elementary: the fundamental laws of the universe.
    2. Forming or serving as an essential component of a system or structure; central: an example that was fundamental to the argument.
    3. Of great significance or entailing major change: a book that underwent fundamental revision.
    4. Of or relating to the component of lowest frequency of a periodic wave or quantity.
    5. Of or relating to the lowest possible frequency of a vibrating element or system.
  2. Physics
    1. Of or relating to the component of lowest frequency of a periodic wave or quantity.
    2. Of or relating to the lowest possible frequency of a vibrating element or system.
  3. Music Having the root in the bass: a fundamental chord.
n.  
  1. Something that is an essential or necessary part of a system or object.
  2. Music The first harmonic in a harmonic series; the lowest harmonic.
  3. Physics The lowest frequency of a periodically varying quantity or of a vibrating system.
fun'da·men'tal·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Fundamental

Fun`da*men"tal\, a. [Cf. F. fondamental.] Pertaining to the foundation or basis; serving for the foundation. Hence: Essential, as an element, principle, or law; important; original; elementary; as, a fundamental truth; a fundamental axiom.

The fundamental reasons of this war. --Shak.

Some fundamental antithesis in nature. --Whewell.

Fundamental bass (Mus.), the root note of a chord; a bass formed of the roots or fundamental tones of the chords.

Fundamental chord (Mus.), a chord, the lowest tone of which is its root.

Fundamental colors, red, green, and violet-blue. See Primary colors, under Color.

Fundamental

Fun"da*men`tal\, n. A leading or primary principle, rule, law, or article, which serves as the groundwork of a system; essential part, as, the fundamentals of the Christian faith.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : fundamental
Spanish: fundamental,
German: grundlegend,
Japanese: 基本的な
More Translations »

fundamental 
c.1443, "primary, original, pertaining to a foundation," modeled on L.L. fundamentalis "of the foundation," from L. fundamentum "foundation" (see fundament). Religious senses of fundamentalist (1920) and fundamentalism (1923) began in Amer.Eng. with a movement among Protestants c.1920-25 based on scriptural inerrancy, etc., and associated with William Jennings Bryan, among others. Fundamentalist first used in print by Curtis Lee Laws, editor of "The Watchman Examiner," a Baptist newspaper.
" 'Fundamentalism' ... appears to have been used first in connexion with the (American) Northern Baptist Convention of 1920 to describe the more conservative delegates who desired 'to restate, reaffirm, and reemphasize the fundamentals of our New Testament faith.' ... Now 'Fundamentalism' ... appears to describe the bigoted rejection of all Biblical criticism, a mechanical view of inspiration and an excessively literalist interpretation of scripture." ["London Times," Aug. 25, 1955]
Garry Wills, in "Under God" (1990) traces the terms and the movement to the Presbyterian General Assembly of 1910, which drew up a list of five defining qualities of "true believers" which other evangelicals published in a mass-circulation series of books called "The Fundamentals." A World's Christian Fundamentals Association was founded in 1918. Applied to other religions, especially Islam, since 1957.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: fun·da·men·tal
Pronunciation: "f&n-d&-'ment-&l
Function: noun
: the principal musical tone producedby vibration (as of a string or column of air) on which a series of higher overtones is based
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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