con·di·tion
(kən-dĭsh́ən)
[Middle English condicioun, from Old French condicion, from Late Latin conditiō, conditiōn-, alteration of Latin condiciō, from condīcere, to agree, com-, com-, + dīcere, to talk.]
noun
- A mode or state of being: “ survives as a modern classic because it captures a permanent part of our social condition” (Robert J. Samuelson) See synonyms at state
- A state of health.
- A state of readiness or physical fitness.
- A disease or physical ailment: a heart condition.
- Social position; rank.
- One that is indispensable to the appearance or occurrence of another; prerequisite: Compatibility is a condition of a successful marriage.
- One that restricts or modifies another; a qualification.
- Existing circumstances: Conditions in the office made concentration impossible.
- Grammar The dependent clause of a conditional sentence; protasis.
- Logic A proposition on which another proposition depends; the antecedent of a conditional proposition.
- Law
- A provision making the effect of a legal instrument contingent on the occurrence of an uncertain future event.
- The event itself.
- An unsatisfactory grade given to a student, serving notice that deficiencies can be made up by the completion of additional work.
- Obsolete Disposition; temperament.
transitive verb: -tioned, -tion·ing, -tions.
- To make dependent on a condition or conditions.
- To stipulate as a condition.
- To render fit for work or use.
- To accustom (oneself or another) to; adapt: had to condition herself to long hours of hard work; conditioned the troops to marches at high altitudes.
- To air-condition.
- To give the unsatisfactory grade of condition to.
- Psychology To cause an organism to respond in a specific manner to a conditioned stimulus in the absence of an unconditioned stimulus.
- To replace moisture or oils in (hair, for example) by use of a therapeutic product.
