traditional
Americanadjective
-
of or relating to beliefs, legends, customs, information, etc., handed down from generation to generation, especially by word of mouth or by practice.
While in Kyoto I experienced a traditional Japanese tea ceremony.
We use only traditional, time-tested methods to make our wines.
They gave us a book of traditional stories from the Inuit culture.
- Synonyms:
- established, customary, conventional
-
in accordance with customs or beliefs handed down from generation to generation.
It is traditional in some cultures for the bride to be given away by her father.
- Synonyms:
- established, customary, conventional
-
designating any of various Indigenous or folk religions that do not have a primary founder, written scriptures, or buildings for public worship, and that revolve around practice, ritual, and ceremony rather than systems of doctrine or belief.
Many of our First Peoples, especially those living on treaty lands, continue to practice traditional religion.
-
(of a person) adhering or conforming to customs, beliefs, values, etc., handed down from generation to generation; preferring what is old or long established; old-fashioned.
My mom and dad are very traditional and often clash with modern expectations.
-
of, relating to, or characteristic of the older styles of jazz, especially New Orleans style, Chicago style, Kansas City style, and Dixieland.
adjective
-
of, relating to, or being a tradition
-
of or relating to the style of jazz originating in New Orleans, characterized by collective improvisation by a front line of trumpet, trombone, and clarinet accompanied by various rhythm instruments
Other Word Forms
- antitraditional adjective
- antitraditionally adverb
- nontraditional adjective
- nontraditionally adverb
- nontraditionary adjective
- pretraditional adjective
- protraditional adjective
- quasi-traditional adjective
- quasi-traditionally adverb
- semitraditional adjective
- semitraditionally adverb
- traditionality noun
- traditionally adverb
- untraditional adjective
- untraditionally adverb
Etymology
Origin of traditional
First recorded in 1585–95; from Medieval Latin trāditiōnālis; equivalent to tradition + -al 1
Explanation
Traditional can describe anything that follows tradition, or a usual way of doing things. Traditional Mexican food includes tortillas and beans. A bag of corn chips with chili and fake cheese sauce, on the other hand, is not traditional. A tradition can be personal or national, and the adjective traditional has tons of uses. Traditional football might require a brown pigskin ball or a white soccer ball, depending on where you live. Your traditional national costume could be a sari, while your friend's is a kimono. And that walking taco? It's traditional carnival food for some.
Vocabulary lists containing traditional
The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 1
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The researchers showed that this motion can be passed directly to electrons, giving them orbital angular momentum without relying on traditional magnetic methods.
From Science Daily • Apr. 19, 2026
Still, Intel’s strong position in the server market should help the company capture some of the new momentum, especially as demand also grows for replacements of traditional non-AI servers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 19, 2026
Mahdi says people on the study who did a traditional internet search largely ended up on the NHS website and "were better prepared".
From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026
But these are not books designed to win arguments in the traditional sense.
From Salon • Apr. 18, 2026
The modern rows were almost as tall as he and the traditional were about three inches shorter.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
