fundamental

[ fuhn-duh-men-tl ]
/ ˌfʌn dəˈmɛn tl /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR fundamental ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

serving as, or being an essential part of, a foundation or basis; basic; underlying: fundamental principles; the fundamental structure.
of, relating to, or affecting the foundation or basis: a fundamental revision.
being an original or primary source: a fundamental idea.
Music. (of a chord) having its root as its lowest note.

noun

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Origin of fundamental

1400–50; late Middle English <Medieval Latin fundāmentālis of, belonging to a foundation. See fundament, -al1

OTHER WORDS FROM fundamental

Words nearby fundamental

function space, function word, functor, fund, fundament, fundamental, fundamental bass, fundamental constant, fundamental force, fundamental frequency, fundamental interaction
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to fundamental

major, paramount, integral, crucial, indispensable, constitutional, elemental, theoretical, underlying, necessary, vital, significant, radical, elementary, central, principal, intrinsic, essential, structural, foundation

Example sentences from the Web for fundamental

British Dictionary definitions for fundamental

fundamental
/ (ˌfʌndəˈmɛntəl) /

adjective

of, involving, or comprising a foundation; basic
of, involving, or comprising a source; primary
music denoting or relating to the principal or lowest note of a harmonic series
of or concerned with the component of lowest frequency in a complex vibration

noun

Derived forms of fundamental

fundamentality or fundamentalness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012