institutional

American  

[in-sti-too-shuh-nl, -tyoo-] / ˌɪn stɪˈtu ʃə nl, -ˈtyu- /

adjective

1. of or relating to organized establishments, foundations, societies, or the like, or to the buildings they occupy.

   The association offers an institutional membership discount to members of affiliated groups.

2. of the nature of an established organization or institution.

   institutional bureaucracy.

3. relating to or noting a policy, practice, or belief system that has been established as normative or customary throughout an institution or society, particularly as perpetuated in institutions of a public character, as schools, courts, or legislative bodies: institutional sexism in academia;

   institutional racism in the criminal justice system;

   institutional sexism in academia;

   institutional prejudice against members of the gay community.

4. characterized by the blandness, drabness, uniformity, and lack of individualized attention attributed to large institutions that serve many people.

   institutional food.

5. (of advertising) having as the primary object the establishment of goodwill and a favorable reputation rather than the immediate sale of the product.

6. relating to established principles or institutes, especially of jurisprudence.

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institutional British  

/ ˌɪnstɪˈtjuːʃənəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of institutions

2. dull, routine, and uniform

   institutional meals

3. relating to principles or institutes, esp of law

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Other Word Forms

• anti-institutional adjective
• anti-institutionally adverb
• institutionally adverb
• interinstitutional adjective
• interinstitutionally adverb
• noninstitutional adjective
• noninstitutionally adverb
• uninstitutional adjective
• uninstitutionally adverb

Etymology

Origin of institutional

First recorded in 1610–20; institution + -al ¹

Example Sentences

Several crypto-native companies are supporting the institutional launch of SoFiUSD and using SoFi’s infrastructure to build new financial services.

From Barron's • Apr. 2, 2026

The U.A.E.’s integration with Israeli systems under the United States Central Command isn’t the product of crisis improvisation; it’s the fruit of years of patient institutional work.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

There’s a clean path for U.S. stocks next month to advance after massive institutional deleveraging, according to a report from Goldman Sachs trading desk team.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 27, 2026

Sotomayor is writing, Steiker noted, “to institutional actors—judges, prosecutors, defense lawyers—to make clear that the court, or least some portion of it, is keenly aware of problems that it is not presently able to correct.”

From Slate • Mar. 27, 2026

It is an institutional fact because contracts depend on the interpretation of dates.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton