transitional

Also tran·si·tion·ar·y

[tran-zish-uh-nl, ‐-sish‐]

adjective

1. of or relating to a transition from one position, state, stage, subject, concept, etc., to another: transitional housing for people with serious mental illness.

   transitional governments;

   transitional housing for people with serious mental illness.

Other Word Forms

• transitionally adverb
• nontransitional adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of transitional¹

First recorded in 1670–80; transition ( def. ) + -al ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

This innovation places the vessel at an important transitional stage in ship-building technology.

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Mr. Sharaa once promised an “inclusive transitional government,” yet he excluded groups such as the Kurds and Druze from constitution-drafting and the appointment of parliamentarians, which gave limited seats to the country’s minorities.

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The plan would create a legal mandate for an international stabilization force and lay the groundwork for a new transitional government in Gaza through a “Board of Peace” that would initially oversee Gaza’s reconstruction.

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"We knew the start of the season would potentially be slightly choppy for us as we entered into a transitional period with the team," Howe said.

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Losing your job is traumatic, and you may feel like you’re in a bottomless pit, but try to view this as a transitional period, not a permanent sentence.

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Related Words

• capricious 
• fickle 
• fluctuating www.thesaurus.com
• mercurial 
• protean 
• shifting www.thesaurus.com
• unpredictable 
• unsettled 
• unstable 
• varying www.thesaurus.com
• volatile