serving as, or being an essential part of, a foundation or basis; basic; underlying:
fundamental principles; the fundamental structure.
2.
of, pertaining to, or affecting the foundation or basis:
a fundamental revision.
3.
being an original or primary source:
a fundamental idea.
4.
Music. (of a chord) having its root as its lowest note.
noun
5.
a basic principle, rule, law, or the like, that serves as the groundwork of a system; essential part:
to master the fundamentals of a trade.
6.
Also called fundamental note, fundamental tone. Music.
the root of a chord.
the generator of a series of harmonics.
7.
Physics. the component of lowest frequency in a composite wave.
Origin
1400-50;late Middle English < Medieval Latinfundāmentālis of, belonging to a foundation. See fundament, -al1
Related forms
fundamentality, fundamentalness, noun
fundamentally, adverb
nonfundamental, adjective, noun
nonfundamentally, adverb
unfundamental, adjective
unfundamentally, adverb
Synonyms
1. indispensable, primary.
Examples from the web for fundamental
Learning how to create and use mental maps, therefore, is a fundamental part of the process of becoming geographically informed.
The three fishermen, for their part, observed the fundamental protocol: it was the captain's boat.
Stocks and sauces are a fundamental part of our cooking, and he has a true way with them.
Unfortunately, timing is not an inherent and fundamental part of our current software models.
Once the fundamental features were uncovered, the decorating began.
In today's world, multi-tasking is almost fundamental to living a functional life.
But for that happy moment to occur, many fundamental elements must be made right.
They universally depict the fundamental desperation lurking in every moment of life in the show ghetto.
But press reports were not the fundamental cause of the loss of domestic support for the war.
One fundamental mistake that permeates the educational system is the confusion between memorization and knowledge.
British Dictionary definitions for fundamental
fundamental
/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
6.
the principal or lowest note of a harmonic series
the bass note of a chord in root position
7.
(physics) Also called fundamental frequency, first harmonic
the component of lowest frequency in a complex vibration
the frequency of this component
Derived Forms
fundamentality, fundamentalness, noun
Word Origin and History for fundamental
adj.
mid-15c., "primary, original, pertaining to a foundation," modeled on Late Latin fundamentalis "of the foundation," from Latin fundamentum "foundation" (see fundament). Fundamentals "primary principles or rules" of anything is from 1630s.