transitional

Also tran·si·tion·ar·y

[tran-zish-uh-nl, ‐-sish‐]

adjective

1. of or relating to a transition from one position, state, stage, subject, concept, etc., to another: transitional housing for people with serious mental illness.

   transitional governments;

   transitional housing for people with serious mental illness.

Other Word Forms

• transitionally adverb
• nontransitional adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of transitional¹

First recorded in 1670–80; transition ( def. ) + -al ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

The net result is that, despite some transitional relief, lots of them will see significant increases in their business rates bill.

Read more on BBC

Gen Horta N'Tam becomes the transitional president for a period of one year.

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The transitional period between Spaceland and the Satellite is marked by the band who helped put it on the map and unintentionally kicked off the fervor to begin with.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Mr. Sharaa once promised an “inclusive transitional government,” yet he excluded groups such as the Kurds and Druze from constitution-drafting and the appointment of parliamentarians, which gave limited seats to the country’s minorities.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The plan would create a legal mandate for an international stabilization force and lay the groundwork for a new transitional government in Gaza through a “Board of Peace” that would initially oversee Gaza’s reconstruction.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• capricious 
• fickle 
• fluctuating www.thesaurus.com
• mercurial 
• protean 
• shifting www.thesaurus.com
• unpredictable 
• unsettled 
• unstable 
• varying www.thesaurus.com
• volatile