Constitutional Convention

American  

noun

1. the convention in Philadelphia (1787) of representatives from each of the former Colonies, except Rhode Island, at which the Constitution of the United States was framed.

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Constitutional Convention Cultural  

1. The gathering that drafted the Constitution of the United States in 1787; all states were invited to send delegates. The convention, meeting in Philadelphia, designed a government with separate legislative, executive, and judicial branches. It established Congress as a lawmaking body with two houses: each state is given two representatives in the Senate, whereas representation in the House of Representatives is based on population.

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Example Sentences

Thirteen of the 39 signers of the Constitution were from the South, and it’s estimated that 25 delegates to the Constitutional Convention owned slaves.

From Salon • May 14, 2026

Benjamin Franklin, when asked what kind of government had been delivered to the new republic after the 1787 Constitutional Convention, offered a timeless warning: “A republic, if you can keep it.”

From Barron's • Oct. 24, 2025

Ben Franklin, famously asked by a woman on the street in Philadelphia what sort of government the Constitutional Convention had wrought, is reported to have said, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 23, 2025

I am currently writing a book called Fathers of the Constitution, and my argument is that two now-nearly-forgotten delegates, James Wilson and Gouverneur Morris, had greater success than Madison at the Constitutional Convention.

From Slate • Aug. 7, 2024

As soon as we are all in our seats, Mr. Fabian begins talking about the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.

From "Muffled" by Jennifer Gennari