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View synonyms for provisional

provisional

[ pruh-vizh-uh-nl ]

adjective

  1. providing or serving for the time being only; existing only until permanently or properly replaced; temporary:

    a provisional government.

    Synonyms: pro tempore, ad interim, stopgap, short-term, interim

  2. accepted or adopted tentatively; conditional; contingent.

    Synonyms: probationary, dependent

  3. (usually initial capital letter) of or being the wing of the Irish Republican Army that follows a policy of violence.


noun

  1. Philately. a stamp that serves temporarily, pending the appearance of the regular issue, or during a temporary shortage of the regular stamps.
  2. a provisional member of a group.
  3. Usually Provisional. a member of the Provisional wing of the Irish Republican Army.

Provisional

1

/ prəˈvɪʒənəl /

adjective

  1. of, designating, or relating to the unofficial factions of the IRA and Sinn Féin that became increasingly dominant following a split in 1969. The Provisional movement remained committed to a policy of terrorism until its ceasefires of the mid-1990s
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


noun

  1. Also calledProvo a member of the Provisional IRA or Sinn Féin
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

provisional

2

/ prəˈvɪʒənəl; prəˈvɪʒənərɪ /

adjective

  1. subject to later alteration; temporary or conditional

    a provisional decision

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a postage stamp surcharged during an emergency to alter the stamp's denomination or significance until a new or regular issue is printed
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • proˈvisionally, adverb
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Other Words From

  • pro·vision·ali·ty pro·vision·al·ness noun
  • pro·vision·al·ly adverb
  • nonpro·vision·al adjective
  • nonpro·vision·al·ly adverb
  • nonpro·vision·ary adjective
  • unpro·vision·al adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of provisional1

First recorded in 1595–1605; provision + -al 1
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Example Sentences

The new estimate also does not fully account for drug overdose deaths, which have risen in 2020 according to provisional counts.

Regulators granted provisional approval to Sinovac’s CoronaVac, doses of which have already been ordered by Turkey, Ukraine, and Brazil.

From Quartz

Flat jobs growth and a provisional decline in restaurant jobs could pressure lawmakers to reach a stimulus deal soon

From Eater

Elections officials make sure your mail-in ballot was not counted before they process your provisional ballot.

The latest change to the provisional deadline, spotted earlier by Reuters, could be the result of one of the parties asking for more time.

The spirit of the novel is one of doubt and questioning; its knowledge is provisional and its perspectives multiple.

Most radical was the 1856 Provisional Constitution drafted by northern abolitionists, including John Brown.

The book opens in December of 2003 with the story of an ambush of the convoy of Coalition Provisional Authority chief Paul Bremer.

Some students waited in line for seven hours to get provisional ballots.

It is better to at least guarantee the Palestinians a state even if its borders are provisional.

The next three months were spent almost entirely in establishing provisional juntas in the different capitals.

One of the provisional junta of government is the greatest slave merchant here.

These papers were received by the junta of Provisional Government, at whose head was the Bishop.

The actual bridge must have the section of all members greater than those in the provisional design in the ratio k/(1-k).

To some extent the policy of the Provisional Government excused his change of attitude.

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Related Words

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provisionProvisional Wing of the Irish Republican Army