positional

adjective

po·​si·​tion·​al pə-ˈzi-sh(ə-)nəl 

1

: of, relating to, or fixed by position

positional astronomy

2

: involving little movement

positional warfare

3

: dependent on position or environment or context

the front-articulated \k\ in \kē\ key and the back-articulated \k\ in \kül\ cool are positional variants

positionally adverb

Examples of positional in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

And is McKenna’s offensive ceiling not enough to overcome some of the positional factors with wingers? — Corey Pronman, New York Times, 12 June 2026

His field vision and positional awareness were rare in a player of his age, perhaps developed in part by his love of chess. — Miami Herald, 11 June 2026

In this style, the two midfielders need to be very active while maintaining positional discipline for the sake of the defense. — Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 11 June 2026

Ejiofor’s positional fit is a little awkward. — Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 9 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1560, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing positional

• benign paroxysmal positional vertigo
• benign positional vertigo
• positional notation

Rhymes for positional

• additional
• conditional
• nutritional
• traditional
• transitional
• volitional
• compositional
• definitional
• depositional
• dispositional
• intuitional
• nontraditional