formal
Etymology 1
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Etymology 1
From Middle English formel, borrowed from Old French formel, from Latin fōrmālis, from fōrma ("form"); equivalent to
formal
- Being in accord with established forms.
- She spoke formal English, without any dialect.
- Official.
- I'd like to make a formal complaint.
- Despite efforts by limnologists and freshwater biologists to create a formal definition of “pond”, there is still no universal distinction between a “pond” and a “lake.”
- Relating to the form or structure of something.
- Formal linguistics ignores the vocabulary of languages and focuses solely on their grammar.
- Relating to formation.
- The formal stage is a critical part of any child's development.
- Ceremonial or traditional.
- Formal wear must be worn at my wedding!
- Proper, according to strict etiquette; not casual.
- He's always very formal, and I wish he'd relax a bit.
- Organized; well-structured and planned.
- When they became a formal club the rowers built a small boathouse.
- (especially, sciences, mathematics, linguistics) In accordance with a methodological framework with well-defined rules or laws; rigorous.
- A set of words can be formal cognates only if they can be derived from a common ancestor by regular sound laws.
- Only formal proofs, which derive theorems logically from their given axioms, are considered satisfactory in modern mathematics.
- (mathematics, philosophy) Relating to mere manipulation and construction of strings of symbols, without regard to their meaning.
- Formal series are defined without any reference to convergence.
formal
- (clothing) An evening gown.
- An event with a formal dress code.
- Jenny took Sam to her Year 12 formal.
- (programming) A formal parameter.
- (Oxbridge slang) Ellipsis of formal hall.
See formo-.
Nounformal
- (uncountable) Formalin.
- An acetal formed from formaldehyde.
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.002
