conventional

[kuhn-ven-shuh-nl]

adjective

1. conforming or adhering to accepted standards, as of conduct or taste.

   conventional behavior.

2. pertaining to convention or general agreement; established by general consent or accepted usage; arbitrarily determined.

   conventional symbols.

   Synonyms: customary, habitual, usual

3. ordinary rather than different or original.

   conventional phraseology.

4. not using, making, or involving nuclear weapons or energy; nonnuclear.

   conventional warfare.

5. Art.

   1. in accordance with an accepted manner, model, or tradition.

   2. (of figurative art) represented in a generalized or simplified manner.

6. of or relating to a convention, agreement, or compact.

7. Law.,  resting on consent, express or implied.

8. of or relating to a convention or assembly.

conventional

/ kənˈvɛnʃənəl /

adjective

1. following the accepted customs and proprieties, esp in a way that lacks originality

   conventional habits

2. established by accepted usage or general agreement

3. of or relating to a convention or assembly

4. law based upon the agreement or consent of parties

5. arts represented in a simplified or generalized way; conventionalized

6. (of weapons, warfare, etc) not nuclear

noun

1. bridge another word for convention

Other Word Forms

• conventionalist noun
• conventionally adverb
• anticonventional adjective
• anticonventionally adverb
• anticonventionalist noun
• nonconventional adjective
• nonconventionally adverb
• quasi-conventional adjective
• quasi-conventionally adverb
• semiconventional adjective
• semiconventionally adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of conventional¹

From the Late Latin word conventiōnālis, dating back to 1575–85. See convention, -al ¹

Synonym Study

See formal ¹.

Example Sentences

Strong demand for high-bandwidth memory predates this year, but what is different now is that conventional memory chips are also hot.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Architecturally, Suntory, though in what was a still untraditional so-called “vineyard” layout for the seating, is more conventional than Gehry’s radical Disney.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Mr. Amos recalls professional advice to go with a more conventional ad featuring an actor-celebrity.

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Establishing a trellised orchard can cost two to four times as much as establishing a conventional free-standing orchard.

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The optimized networks consistently outperformed conventional approaches, even when realistic noise was added.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• current 
• ordinary 
• regular 
• traditional 
• typical