provisional

[ pruh-vizh-uh-nl ]
/ prəˈvɪʒ ə nl /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR provisional ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective Also pro·vi·sion·ar·y [pruh-vizh-uh-ner-ee] /prəˈvɪʒ əˌnɛr i/ (for defs 1, 2).

providing or serving for the time being only; existing only until permanently or properly replaced; temporary: a provisional government.
accepted or adopted tentatively; conditional; probationary.
(usually initial capital letter) of or being the wing of the Irish Republican Army that follows a policy of violence.

noun

Philately. a stamp that serves temporarily, pending the appearance of the regular issue, or during a temporary shortage of the regular stamps.
a provisional member of a group.
(usually initial capital letter) a member of the Provisional wing of the Irish Republican Army.

Origin of provisional

First recorded in 1595–1605; provision + -al1

OTHER WORDS FROM provisional

Words nearby provisional

provinciality, provincialize, proving ground, provirus, provision, provisional, provisional wing of the irish republican army, proviso, provisory, provitamin, provitamin a

Words related to provisionary

conditional, interim, temporary, transitional, unsettled, dependent, ephemeral, experimental, limited, makeshift, passing, qualified, rough-and-ready, stopgap, test, transient, provisory, acting, conjectural, contingent

Example sentences from the Web for provisionary

  • She had already taken that provisionary leap into a mythical future which is one of the perfunctory attitudes of maidenhood.

    The Wayfarers |Mary Stewart Cutting

  • The new system was defined as the "Provisionary Consulate;" but this form was only transitional.

    Notable Events of the Nineteenth Century |Various

  • Gentlemen, such are the series of experiments made by M. Gannal, since the first provisionary report was presented to you.

    History of Embalming |J. N. Gannal

  • At three o'clock the imperial dynasty was proclaimed as at an end, and a provisionary government installed.

    Royal Palaces and Parks of France |Milburg Francisco Mansfield

British Dictionary definitions for provisionary (1 of 2)

Provisional
/ (prəˈvɪʒənəl) /

adjective

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

noun

Also called: Provo a member of the Provisional IRA or Sinn Féin
Compare Official

British Dictionary definitions for provisionary (2 of 2)

provisional

less commonly provisionary (prəˈvɪʒənərɪ)

/ (prəˈvɪʒənəl) /

adjective

subject to later alteration; temporary or conditional a provisional decision

noun

a postage stamp surcharged during an emergency to alter the stamp's denomination or significance until a new or regular issue is printed

Derived forms of provisional

provisionally, adverb