You use fundamental to describe things, activities, and principles that are very important or essential. They affect the basic nature of other things or are the most important element upon which other things depend.
Our constitution embodies all the fundamental principles of democracy.
A fundamental human right is being withheld from these people.
Technical skill is a fundamental basis for most, if not all, great art.
Synonyms: central, first, most important, prime More Synonyms of fundamental
2. adjective [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
You use fundamental to describe something which exists at a deep and basic level, and is therefore likely to continue.
But on this question, the two leaders have very fundamental differences.
Synonyms: basic, essential, underlying, organic More Synonyms of fundamental
3. adjective
If one thing is fundamental to another, it is absolutely necessary to it, and the second thing cannot exist, succeed, or be imagined without it.
Communication is fundamental to human society.
The method they pioneered remains fundamental to research into the behaviour of nervecells.
4. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
You can use fundamental to show that you are referring to what you consider to be the most important aspect of a situation, and that you are not concerned with less important details.
The fundamental problem lies in their inability to distinguish between reality andinvention.
It was not simply a practical matter, but a fundamental question of principle.
5. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
Fundamental research into a subject is concerned with gaining knowledge about the subject itself, rather than its practical aspects.
Industry leaders want scientists to engage in fundamental research, not applied research.
fundamental in British English
(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
5.
a principle, law, etc, that serves as the basis of an idea or system
teaching small children the fundamentals of road safety
They agree on fundamentals, like the need for further political reform.
6.
a.
the principal or lowest note of a harmonic series
b.
the bass note of a chord in root position
7. Also called: fundamental frequency, first harmonic physics
a.
the component of lowest frequency in a complex vibration
b.
the frequency of this component
Derived forms
fundamentality (ˌfundamenˈtality) or fundamentalness (ˌfundaˈmentalness)
noun
fundamental in American English
(ˌfʌndəˈmɛntəl)
adjective
1.
of or forming a foundation or basis; basic; essential
the fundamental rules of art
2.
relating to what is basic; radical
a fundamental alteration
3.
on which others are based; primary; original
a fundamental type
4.
most important; chief
his fundamental needs
5. Music
a.
designating or of the lowest, or root, tone of a chord
b.
designating the prime or main tone of a harmonic series
6. Physics
designating or of a fundamental
noun
7.
a principle, theory, law, etc. serving as a basis; essential part
8. Music
a.
the lowest, or root, tone of a chord
b.
the prime or main tone of a harmonic series
9. Physics
the lowest frequency at which a system, as an air column or stretched string, will freely vibrate
Derived forms
fundamentally (ˌfundaˈmentally)
adverb
Word origin
LME < ML fundamentalis < L fundamentum: see fundament
Examples of 'fundamental' in a sentence
fundamental
Women are by necessity more in touch with their fundamental life rhythms.
Daisy Waugh TEN STEPS TO HAPPINESS (2003)
From the beginning they'd been an uneasy partnership, the fundamental principles of which had confounded both.
Clive Barker THE GREAT AND SECRET SHOW (2003)
Then everything escaped from him at once, his exploding breath and his fundamental hatred of Hanuman's elitism.
Zindell, David THE BROKEN GOD (2003)
A person's fundamental nature is difficult to explain, he thought.
José Latour OUTCAST (2003)
In other languages
fundamental
British English: fundamental ADJECTIVE
You use fundamental to describe things, activities, and principles that are very important or essential.
Our constitution embodies all the fundamental principles of democracy.
American English: fundamental
Brazilian Portuguese: fundamental
Chinese: 主要的
European Spanish: fundamental
French: fondamental
German: fundamental
Italian: fondamentale
Japanese: 根本的な
Korean: 근본적인
European Portuguese: fundamental
Latin American Spanish: fundamental
All related terms of 'fundamental'
fundamental law
the law determining the constitution of the government of a state; organic law
fundamental bass
a theoretical bass line of the roots of a succession of chords
fundamental unit
one of a set of unrelated units that form the basis of a system of units. For example , the metre , kilogram , and second are fundamental units of the SI system
fundamental constant
a physical constant , such as the gravitational constant or speed of light, that plays a fundamental role in physics and chemistry and usually has an accurately known value
fundamental frequency
of, involving, or comprising a foundation ; basic
fundamental particle
→ elementary particle
fundamental principle
The principles of a particular theory or philosophy are its basic rules or laws.
fundamental research
research carried out to deepen understanding of the fundamental or basic principles of something
missing fundamental
a tone , not present in the sound received by the ear , whose pitch is that of the difference between the two tones that are sounded
fundamental interaction
any of the four basic interactions that occur in nature: the gravitational , electromagnetic , strong, and weak interactions
base unit
any of the fundamental units in a system of measurement . The base SI units are the metre , kilogram , second, ampere , kelvin , candela , and mole
elementary particle
any of several entities , such as electrons , neutrons , or protons , that are less complex than atoms and are regarded as the constituents of all matter