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formal
1[ fawr-muhl ]
adjective
- being in accordance with the usual requirements, customs, etc.; conventional:
to pay one's formal respects.
- marked by form or ceremony:
a formal occasion.
- designed for wear or use at occasions or events marked by elaborate ceremony or prescribed social observance:
The formal attire included tuxedos and full-length gowns.
- requiring a type of dress suitable for such occasions:
a formal dance.
- observant of conventional requirements of behavior, procedure, etc., as persons; ceremonious.
Synonyms: conformist
- excessively ceremonious:
a manner that was formal and austere.
Synonyms: punctilious
- being a matter of form only; perfunctory:
We expected more than just formal courtesy.
- made or done in accordance with procedures that ensure validity:
a formal authorization.
- of, relating to, or emphasizing the organization or composition of the constituent elements in a work of art perceived separately from its subject matter:
a formal approach to painting; the formal structure of a poem.
- being in accordance with prescribed or customary forms:
a formal siege.
- Theater. (of a stage setting) generalized and simplified in design, especially of architectural elements, and serving as a permanent set for a play irrespective of changes in location.
- acquired in school; academic:
He had little formal training in economics.
- symmetrical or highly organized:
a formal garden.
- of, reflecting, or noting a usage of language in which syntax, pronunciation, etc., adhere to traditional standards of correctness and usage is characterized by the absence of casual, contracted, and colloquial forms:
The paper was written in formal English.
- Philosophy.
- pertaining to form.
- Aristotelianism. not material; essential.
- Logic. formal logic ( def ).
- pertaining to the form, shape, or mode of a thing, especially as distinguished from the substance:
formal writing, bereft of all personality.
- being such merely in appearance or name; nominal:
a formal head of the government having no actual powers.
- Mathematics.
- (of a proof ) in strict logical form with a justification for every step.
- (of a calculation) correct in form; made with strict justification for every step.
- (of a calculation, derivation, representation, or the like) of or relating to manipulation of symbols without regard to their meaning.
noun
- a dance, ball, or other social occasion that requires formalwear.
- an evening gown.
adverb
- in formal attire:
We're supposed to go formal.
formal
2[ fawr-mal ]
noun
formal
1/ ˈfɔːmæl /
formal
2/ ˈfɔːməl /
adjective
- of, according to, or following established or prescribed forms, conventions, etc
a formal document
- characterized by observation of conventional forms of ceremony, behaviour, dress, etc
a formal dinner
- methodical, precise, or stiff
- suitable for occasions organized according to conventional ceremony
formal dress
- denoting or characterized by idiom, vocabulary, etc, used by educated speakers and writers of a language
- acquired by study in academic institutions
a formal education
- regular or symmetrical in form
a formal garden
- of or relating to the appearance, form, etc, of something as distinguished from its substance
- logically deductive
formal proof
- philosophy
- of or relating to form as opposed to matter or content
- pertaining to the essence or nature of something
formal cause
- (in the writings of Descartes) pertaining to the correspondence between an image or idea and its object
- being in the formal mode
- denoting a second-person pronoun in some languages used when the addressee is a stranger, social superior, etc
in French the pronoun ``vous'' is formal, while ``tu'' is informal
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Derived Forms
- ˈformally, adverb
- ˈformalness, noun
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Other Words From
- formal·ness noun
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Word History and Origins
Origin of formal1
Origin of formal2
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Word History and Origins
Origin of formal1
Origin of formal2
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Synonym Study
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Example Sentences
Broadly, the war is between the formal linguists and the sociolinguists.
Taking place after the 400-person formal dinner, it’s geared specifically toward younger people and costs less than one-third of the spring benefit’s entry-level ticket.
No surprise, there’s been a trend away from formal event–oriented wear, but other than that there hasn’t been much change.
Those interactions are less formal than what you get with video-conferencing services.
It’s not as formal as perhaps a medical leave of absence where a third party is approving a leave request.
This tendency for informal learning to eclipse formal learning in terms of our behaviors is not limited to doctors or police officers.
Since apartments are already allowed in the areas in which it applies, the city can adopt the measure without going through a formal “re-zoning” process, which would trigger state-mandated studies that could take years to complete.
The hospital’s chief nursing officer told investigators that there had been no formal meetings to implement the ZIP code list with staff and that no formal policy was developed regarding its use.
The four researchers fed the Keller proof into a formal proof checker — a computer program that traced the logic of the argument — and confirmed it works.
Among the spaces Covid-19 has closed around the world are countless offices, nightclubs, and other habitats of formal footwear.
Whereas more formal imagery could create more purchasing intent but less of engaging customer experience.
The first variant is an ethereal form of beauty, reflected in formal structures and patterns.
Another was posted on Monster for the position of Reservation Specialist through Expedia, seeking someone that has “Accent neutral verbal communication as verified by an Expedia-approved formal test.”
As a result, training squadrons—called Formal Training Units (FTU)—are being staffed with less than half the people they need.
He hoped also to be a chaplain through his local church, and he was nearing the end of his formal training.
“The psychology of BDSM is lacking in other formal training regiments and interactions,” added Stella.
I remember that he's a food-and-wine maven and rather formal.
“To my knowledge, there was no formal consultation done with the tribes on this policy,” says Eid.
When Jackson found out about this campaign against him a year later, he made a formal request that every charge be investigated.
FWS submitted a formal rule and delisted the grizzly in 2007, but was sued by wildlife groups.
But it is the designs for less formal occasions where Kate has found a fundamental component of her working wardrobe.
Anything with the Count (Count von Count if you're inclined to be formal) taught numbers and basic arithmetic through songs.
Public pressure soon dictated the need for a formal White House reaction to the Iran revelation.
But their protestations often were marked by grim frowns or quieter caveats when they thought the formal interview over.
He is not considered a formal suspect in the case—at least not yet.
Nothing formal was yet on the books, and for obvious reasons, those plans have now been placed on permanent hold.
In 2004, we convinced the city to make a formal agreement.
But it was the subtle things like his trademark side-smile or his formal “Mr. Torre” ways that had us swooning.
McEwan seems to have grown enamored with the formal technique of embedding small facsimiles of stories within a larger narrative.
Last month, Sarkozy was placed under formal investigation for “active corruption” in a case linked indirectly to the Tapie Affair.
Investigating magistrates can later decide to drop the case or they can choose to follow through with a formal criminal charge.
Jeffrey said any formal and public opening with Iran over Iraq also brought with it some political risks.
Here, breakfast begins with a crusty cornetto alla crema served by a formal, dinner jacket-wearing waiter.
Twice a year the formal invitation was sent out by the old nobleman to his only son, and to his two nephews.
Various matters mentioned by the governor receive perfunctory and formal answers.
Tressan advanced to meet him, a smile of cordial welcome on his lips, and they bowed to each other in formal greeting.
She sat in a distant corner of the formal room discreetly lit by a shaded lamp.
There were two hard formal-looking couches, with straight backs and spider legs.
He was a big man, and looked bigger than he was; good-looking too; ruddy, portly, well-dressed and formal.
Weston had none of our stiff, formal ways, but was making himself as much at home as possible in such trying circumstances.
But it may be primarily laid hold upon in some instances in the formal performance of that exercise.
He was all for change and innovation, and managed to get the principle of formal election to the chairmanship established.
To wait for the slow approaches of a formal siege was out of the question.
France had been a direct and formal despotism for almost two hundred years.
After the formal proclamation was issued the function terminated with a banquet given to 200 insurgent notabilities.
French leave is preferable to a formal leave-taking upon such occasions.
Consent to an assignment may be given by the president of the company, without formal vote by the directors.
For the rest, it was well and solidly furnished, very clean and orderly, but withal a little formal.
Mary ran upstairs to beg to be excused the formal walk, and, luckily for her, Miss Winter was in Margaret's room.
To-day our friends the merchants are under fresh alarm, and have made a formal request to the captain to stay.
With curling lip Garnache bowed stiffly, and in a cold, formal voice he announced himself.
After the cold, formal, loveless life at her aunt's, she appreciated her own humble home more than ever before.
The Imperial family now live entirely here, and only go to town on formal business or occasions of state.
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