modification

[mod-uh-fi-key-shuhn]

noun

1. an act or instance of modifying.

2. the state of being modified; partial alteration.

3. a modified form; variety.

4. Biology.,  a change in a living organism acquired from its own activity or environment and not transmitted to its descendants.

5. limitation or qualification.

6. Grammar.

   1. the use of a modifier in a construction, or of modifiers in a class of constructions or in a language.

   2. the meaning of a modifier, especially as it affects the meaning of the word or other form modified.

      Limitation is one kind of modification.

   3. a change in the phonological shape of a morpheme, word, or other form when it functions as an element in a construction, as the change of not to -n't in doesn't.

   4. an adjustment in the form of a word as it passes from one language to another.

modification

/ ˌmɒdɪfɪˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of modifying or the condition of being modified

2. something modified; the result of a modification

3. a small change or adjustment

4. grammar the relation between a modifier and the word or phrase that it modifies

modification

1. A change in an organism that results from external influences and cannot be inherited.

Other Word Forms

• intermodification noun
• overmodification noun
• premodification noun
• remodification noun
• modificatory adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of modification¹

1495–1505; < Latin modificātiōn- (stem of modificātiō ), equivalent to modificāt ( us ) (past participle of modificāre; modify ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

"All of the modifications were very much about speed and acceleration," said forensic investigator PC Matt Rue.

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“At Asilomar, we had identified the genetic modification of humans as the biggest coming issue,” Baltimore said.

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Gustavson was jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years at the Old Bailey in 2024 for leading an extreme body modification ring.

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"Some of them have modifications that are illegal, and they're illegal for a reason."

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The new ordinance also contains other fee changes, including an increase in the business diagram modification review fee and a drop in the ownership structure modification review fee.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• adjustment 
• alteration 
• conversion