transitional

American

[tran-zish-uh-nl, ‐-sish‐] / trænˈzɪʃ ə nl, ‐ˈsɪʃ‐ /

Also transitionary

adjective

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

nontransitional adjective
transitionally adverb

Etymology

Origin of transitional

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

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.

First Minister John Swinney, campaigning in North Lanarkshire, said his government introduced more than £900m transitional relief on business tax, telling BBC Scotland News that many businesses would see reductions.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

These transitional agreements allow them to delay the introduction, in some cases for more than a decade, because they are locked into existing contracts which would be too costly to change.

From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026

When Lurie announced plans to accelerate the city’s homelessness response with transitional housing and treatment beds, he name-checked the Schwabs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

The California rollout of transitional kindergarten, or TK, which has encouraged families to enter the public school system when their child is 4, complicates decision-making.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026

I explained to Mr. de Klerk that we could not tell our supporters to relax sanctions until he had completely dismanried apartheid and a transitional government was in place.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023