fundamental

[fuhn-duh-men-tl]

adjective

1. serving as, or being an essential part of, a foundation or basis; basic; underlying.

   fundamental principles;

   the fundamental structure.

   Synonyms: primary, indispensable

2. of, relating to, or affecting the foundation or basis.

   a fundamental revision.

3. being an original or primary source.

   a fundamental idea.

4. Music.,  (of a chord) having its root as its lowest note.

noun

1. a basic principle, rule, law, or the like, that serves as the groundwork of a system; essential part.

   to master the fundamentals of a trade.

2. Also called fundamental tone. Also called fundamental note,. Music.

   1. the root of a chord.

   2. the generator of a series of harmonics.

3. Physics.,  the component of lowest frequency in a composite wave.

fundamental

/ ˌfʌndəˈmɛntəl /

adjective

1. of, involving, or comprising a foundation; basic

2. of, involving, or comprising a source; primary

3. music denoting or relating to the principal or lowest note of a harmonic series

4. of or concerned with the component of lowest frequency in a complex vibration

noun

1. a principle, law, etc, that serves as the basis of an idea or system

2. 1. the principal or lowest note of a harmonic series

   2. the bass note of a chord in root position

3. Also called: fundamental frequency.  first harmonic. physics

   1. the component of lowest frequency in a complex vibration

   2. the frequency of this component

Other Word Forms

• fundamentality noun
• fundamentalness noun
• fundamentally adverb
• nonfundamental adjective
• nonfundamentally adverb
• unfundamental adjective
• unfundamentally adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of fundamental¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Medieval Latin fundāmentālis “of, belonging to a foundation”; fundament, -al ¹

Example Sentences

“There’s no change to the fundamentals of the U.S.-China relationship,” said Daniel Kritenbrink, a partner at the Asia Group, an advisory firm, and a former longtime diplomat in Asia.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Still, it reflects the player's sense that something fundamental has changed.

Read more on BBC

“Some commitments are too fundamental to be traded away.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

In fact, the underlying fundamentals for Nvidia have improved even more than I anticipated a few months ago.

Read more on Barron's

And the first-quarter results showed those fundamentals remain in place, analysts said.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

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